Department for Transport

Shipping

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of legislative changes required for (a) the shipping industry, (b) the ports sector and (c) UK seafarers and dock workers once the UK leaves the EU.

Mr John Hayes: The European Communities Act will be repealed on the day we leave the European Union – meaning that the authority of EU law in Britain will end. We will convert the body of existing EU law into domestic law and Parliament will be free to amend, repeal and improve any law it chooses. This process will give businesses and workers maximum certainty as we leave the European Union. And we are absolutely clear: existing workers’ legal rights will continue to be guaranteed in law. The maritime sector is, of course, being considered as part of the Government’s work developing an overall approach to negotiations.

Shipping

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on legislative changes required for the maritime services sector once the UK leaves the EU.

Mr John Hayes: The European Communities Act will be repealed on the day we leave the European Union – meaning that the authority of EU law in Britain will end. We will convert the body of existing EU law into domestic law and Parliament will be free to amend, repeal and improve any law it chooses. This process will give businesses and workers maximum certainty as we leave the European Union. And we are absolutely clear: existing workers’ legal rights will continue to be guaranteed in law. The maritime sector is, of course, being considered as part of the Government’s work developing an overall approach to negotiations.

Shipping

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's priorities will be for the maritime sector in negotiations with other EU countries before the UK leaves the EU.

Mr John Hayes: The European Communities Act will be repealed on the day we leave the European Union – meaning that the authority of EU law in Britain will end. We will convert the body of existing EU law into domestic law and Parliament will be free to amend, repeal and improve any law it chooses. This process will give businesses and workers maximum certainty as we leave the European Union. And we are absolutely clear: existing workers’ legal rights will continue to be guaranteed in law. The maritime sector is, of course, being considered as part of the Government’s work developing an overall approach to negotiations.

Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraphs 4.82 to 4.84 of the Maritime Growth Study: Keeping the UK competitive in a global market, published 7 September 2015, what actions the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has taken to implement the conclusions of the Survey and Inspection Transformation Programme (SITP); and which conclusions from the SITP currently await implementation by the MCA.

Mr John Hayes: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is implementing changes so that they can operate in a more effective, efficient and commercial manner, with respect to ship survey and inspection activities. This follows the public consultation on estates laydown and organisational structure. The MCA has completed its dialogue with trade union representatives and a formal offer in relation to pay, terms and conditions has been made. That offer is now subject of a union ballot that closes on 13 January. In terms of the fees that the MCA charges for its services, officials are developing a revised fee structure in light of the recent separate consultation on this matter. I expect the revised fee structure to be in place in the first half of 2017.

Great Western Railway Line: Electrification

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the Great Western Railway electrification scheme to be completed.

Paul Maynard: Network Rail is delivering the Great Western Electrification Programme to the dates set out in Sir Peter Hendy’s report published on 25 November 2015. This includes completing electrification of the Great Western Mainline to Cardiff by December 2018. For the sections of electrification due for completion in Control Period 6 (CP6) (2019-2024), including the four sections which were deferred in November 2016, delivery schedules will be agreed as part of Network Rail’s CP6 planning process.

Department for Transport: Consultants

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will name each of the external consultants contracted by his Department to carry out work to implement the recommendations of the Maritime Growth Study since September 2015; and what the (a) completion date and (b) value is of each such contract.

Mr John Hayes: There have been three external consultancies which have carried out work to implement the recommendations of the Maritime Growth Study. They are: KPMG consultancy services undertook an analysis of commercial opportunities within the Maritime and Coastguard Agency at a cost of £207,744.00 (inclusive of VAT). It reported on 14 September 2016. Oxford Economics undertook a review to update its assessment of the requirement for seafarers in the UK maritime sector at a cost of £113,238 (inclusive of VAT). It reported on 31st October 2016. Frazer-Nash with Oxford Economics undertook a review of Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) funding at a cost of £122,287 (inclusive of VAT). It reported on 31st December 2016.

Cycling: Accidents

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons he did not exchange his details with the cyclist whom he was involved in a road incident with on 12 October 2016.

Andrew Jones: This was an unfortunate accident. My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State got out of the car, checked the cyclist was okay and waited until he was back on his feet. He spoke to the cyclist and apologised; they shook hands. No details were requested at the time by either party. The Secretary of State has since been in contact with the cyclist and the matter is closed.

Cycling: Accidents

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the incident between him and a cyclist on 12 October 2016 was reported to his Department's Permanent Secretary.

Andrew Jones: The incident was reported on 12 October following normal procedure.

Railway Stations: Disability

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make representations to Network Rail to ensure that it adds disabled access routes into (a) Brookmans Park railway station and (b) other suburban railway stations with limited access.

Paul Maynard: We remain committed to improving station accessibility and have continued with the Access for All programme, launched in 2006. All of the available Access for All funding is allocated until at least 2019. Should further funding become available in the future we will commission new nominations for projects. In addition, whenever infrastructure work is carried out at a station by the industry, it must comply with the relevant EU and UK standards. These can be found at www.gov.uk/government/publications/accessible-railway-stations-design-standards. My Rt Hon Friend may therefore wish to contact Network Rail to see if any work is planned at Brookmans Park that might trigger these requirements.

Department for Transport: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the value of (a) staffing expenditure, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure by his Department and its arms-length bodies in whole or in part in Yorkshire and the Humber in 2016-17.

Mr John Hayes: The Department does not budget or forecast on a regional basis, as such this information is not available for the current financial year. Information on the total amount of current and capital expenditure on services by organisation in Yorkshire and the Humber is publically available on gov.uk as part of the Country and Regional Analysis statistical release. It contains spending on current and capital expenditure on services by organisation, but not down to the level of staff expenditure. This information covers 2011-12 through to 2015-16 and can be found at the following web link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016 This data can be accessed by using either the ‘interactive tables’ or the ‘database’. The relevant information for 2015-16 is reproduced below; 2015-16 outturn (£’m)DfTCurrent (b)Capital (c)Yorkshire and Humber£1,397m£489m£908m

Motor Vehicles: Foreign Nationals

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers of 18 November 2016 to Question 50859 and 19 December 2016 to Question 55636, and with reference to the article entitled DVLA works with police and HM Revenue and Customs to crack down on illegal foreign registered vehicles, published on the gov.uk website on 30 January 2015, what assessment has been made of (a) the number of illegal foreign registered vehicles on the roads in the UK and (b) the effectiveness of the DVLA working with the police and HM Revenue and Customs to tackle the presence of such vehicles.

Andrew Jones: The Department for Transport does not hold information about the number of foreign registered vehicles circulating illegally in the UK. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) continues to work with police forces to address the issue of foreign registered vehicles which stay in the UK longer than six months in any 12 month period without being registered or licensed here. A pilot, which was a joint initiative between the DVLA, the Central Motorway Police Group and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), ran between November 2014 and February 2015. The pilot involved six police forces, which used information provided by HMRC about foreign vehicles that had been in the UK for more than six months. As a result of this trial, 703 vehicles were seized, of which 500 were reclaimed following payment of the appropriate fees. The remaining 203 vehicles were not claimed within the allotted time and were destroyed. Currently, 17 police forces have acquired devolved DVLA powers which enable them to take appropriate action against non-compliant foreign registered vehicles.

Attorney General: Official Cars

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the charges for Departmental Pool Car Service Charges to the Attorney General's Office between 2012 and 2015, published by his Department on 17 December 2016, what the (a) purpose, (b) distance travelled and (c) cost was of each journey booked by his office.

Mr John Hayes: My Department has not published anything related to Departmental Pool Car charges on 17 December 2016. The Departmental Pool Car is managed by individual Departments and individual trips are not logged.

Heathrow Airport

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for the publication of draft flight paths to and from an expanded Heathrow Airport.

Mr John Hayes: We cannot be certain about the timing of the publication of draft flight paths for an expanded Heathrow Airport, because the airport operator will be leading the application for the airspace changes needed for new flight paths associated with a new runway. They will need to follow the Civil Aviation Authority’s airspace change process. It is through this process that communities will see and have the opportunity to comment on detailed proposals for any new flight paths. This process covers all aspects of the proposal including safety and environmental impacts, and a requirement to consult the communities that may be affected by the proposal.

Heathrow Airport

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish the draft National Policy Statement on the expansion of Heathrow Airport.

Mr John Hayes: I refer the Hon. Member to the oral statement on airport capacity on 25 October 2016: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/airport-capacity. In that statement my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State set out how the announcement fits within the planning process, and the opportunities members of this House have to contribute. He stated that in the New Year, we will bring forward a draft ‘National policy statement’, which includes the details of the proposed scheme. As required under legislation, this will be subject to a full and extensive public consultation, followed by a period of Parliamentary scrutiny. Only once members have voted on the final National Policy Statement and it has been designated will the airport be able to bring forward a detailed planning application.

Heathrow Airport

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to announce which elements of surface access to the proposed third runway at Heathrow Airport will be funded from the public purse.

Mr John Hayes: The Government has been clear that the promoter, Heathrow Airport Limited, will meet the costs of the surface access improvements necessary to allow expansion of the airport. Where a surface access scheme has a wider range of beneficiaries, and are not specific to the addition of a new runway, the Government will consider, along with other relevant stakeholders, the need for public funding on a case-by-case basis. For schemes such as the Western Rail Link and Southern Rail Access, such considerations would take place at an appropriate time in that project’s development process.

Heathrow Airport

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the potential (a) economic benefits and (b) level of new jobs resulting from the third runway at Heathrow Airport by region of the UK.

Mr John Hayes: The economic benefits of a new runway at Heathrow have been assessed at a national level. It is estimated that a new runway will deliver up to £61 billion of benefits to passengers and the wider UK economy. The local jobs created at and around the airport have also been assessed, with Heathrow expansion expected to deliver up to 77,000 additional local jobs by 2030. While it is not possible to precisely quantify the impacts on regional jobs and GDP, expanding airport capacity in the South East will support economic growth in the UK’s regions.

Bus Services

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what guidance his Department issues on standards of consultations prior to bus route changes; and whether there is a requirement in that guidance that passenger number surveys are conducted on multiple days of the week at multiple times of the day.

Andrew Jones: The bus market outside London is deregulated and decisions regarding the provision of individual bus services is a matter for individual operators, or for individual local authorities in the case of services they support. It is for them to decide how to consult with passengers prior to making any changes. Best practice advice is available in the Transport Focus publication “Bus service reviews: consulting on changes to local services - A best practice toolkit".

Trams

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what lessons his Department learned from the Sheffield to Rotherham tram-train pilot; and what steps he is taking to apply those lessons in the proposed tram-train to Glasgow Airport project.

Paul Maynard: Part of the scope of the Sheffield to Rotherham tram train pilot project is the production of a suite of information on the lessons learned during both the design and delivery phases of the project. This information will be published for the benefit of interested parties. The project team is also available to provide advice and have supplied information to a number of cities in the United Kingdom. I understand that the tram train project team have been in contact with the Glasgow Airport Access Project team since autumn 2015 and have shared learning and experience relevant to the early development of that scheme. This has included information on vehicle characteristics and operational interfaces. The Glasgow team have also visited Sheffield to gain direct experience of the tram train vehicles.

Home Office

Undocumented Migrants

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many undocumented migrants (a) have been removed from the UK, (b) are the subject of legal proceedings seeking their removal, (c) have been granted status in the UK and (d) have an outstanding application for leave to remain since being identified through the right to rent scheme.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The information requested is not routinely collated in the format sought in your question. At the time of the Home Office Science Evaluation of Phase 1 of the scheme, volumes of data were low enough to allow manual analysis of individual cases. Volumes of data are now at a level which makes conducting such an exercise cost prohibitive.However our records show that between the start of the scheme and 30 September 2016, 31 individuals identified through the Right to Rent scheme have been removed from the UK.Other cases may be being progressed to removal, or have been made subject to reporting restrictions, or have sought to regularise their stay, or have left the UK voluntarily. The Right to Rent scheme is designed to restrict access to the private rented sector for illegal migrants in order to encourage voluntary departure from the UK and discourage illegal migration. The Home Office will always investigate information it receives about illegal migrants and take appropriate enforcement action according to the information available and the circumstances of the case. It is not always possible to attribute a return or other enforcement activity to the application of a sanction earlier in the case or to the route through which a particular individual was brought to the attention of the Home Office.As with right to work checks, the Right to Rent scheme is predicated on checks being carried out by third parties (in this case landlords and lettings agents). This means that the majority of illegal migrant prospective tenants will be denied access to the private rented sector as a result of these checks with no intervention by enforcement officers or reference to the Home Office. The sanctions set out in the Immigration Acts 2014 and 2016 in relation to the Right to Rent scheme are there to address circumstances where the scheme is not adhered to by landlords and agents.

Marriage of Convenience: Arrests

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many arrests have been made in relation to sham marriages since 2010.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Our published data on arrests made on enforcement visits is available at the following link (Table EVAR 01 refers): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-enforcement-data-november-2016

Undocumented Workers

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it the policy of the Government that firms which employ people who have no legal right to be in the UK should be (a) named and (b) prosecuted.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Immigration Act 2016 introduced a range of further measures to deter people from working illegally in the UK and to respond robustly to rogue businesses who employ them, alongside the sanction of civil penalties. Illegal workers will face the prospect of having their earnings seized as the proceeds of crime as a consequence of illegal working being made a criminal offence. Provisions in the Act make it easier to prosecute an employer who knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, that the person they employ has no permission to work in the UK and this is accompanied by an increase in the maximum custodial sentence from 2 to 5 years. Rogue employers could also have their businesses closed if they continue to flout the law, and licences in the private hire vehicle and taxi sector and alcohol and late night refreshment sector will be subject to immigration checks and continuing compliance with immigration laws.It would not be a proportionate response to name and prosecute every employer who employs an illegal worker. For example, they may have accepted a forged immigration document where the forged element was not reasonably apparent or simply failed to check the right to work document correctly. We will, accordingly, continue to name employers who have not paid or are not making regular payments towards a civil penalty or have been served with a second or further penalty, and apply the civil penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker employed as a sanction in most routine cases involving the employment of illegal workers. However, in more serious cases, prosecution may be considered when it is the appropriate response to non compliance and in the public interest.

Emergency Services: Mobile Radios

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether data held by her Department on the geographic location of mobile telephone masts constructed under the Emergency Services Network Mobile Services contract will be released.

John Glen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many mobile telephone masts are planned to be built in Salisbury constituency under the Emergency Services Network Mobile Services contract.

Brandon Lewis: In delivering the Emergency Services Network (ESN), the mobile network operator EE will deliver up to 291 new mast sites. Government will deliver approximately 230 further sites (known as the “Extended Area Services” (EAS) sites) in the most remote and rural areas of Great Britain.EE has indicated that for the sites they are building for ESN, they will provide detailed information to the mobile network operators on the locations once sites for new masts are legally acquired and planning permission has been granted.For EAS sites, proposed locations have been shared with the Scottish and Welsh Governments. Planning applications due to be submitted during 2017 will confirm and make public the precise locations of these sites.There are currently no new sites proposed in the constituency of Salisbury as part of ESN.

Firearms: Licensing

Mr Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding was allocated to the firearms licensing department of each police authority area in England and Wales in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Mr Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police (a) officers and (b) civilian staff were employed in firearms licensing departments in each police authority area in England and Wales in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Brandon Lewis: The Home Office does not hold data centrally on how police funding is allocated to the firearms licensing department of forces in England and Wales, nor the number of officers and staff who are employed in firearms licensing departments. Data are published on the primary function of officers and staff, but these do not allow firearms licensing roles to be separately identified.The deployment of available resources is an operational decision for Chief Officers, working with their Police and Crime Commissioner.

Overseas Students: Entry Clearances

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55996, how many universities do not stick to the rules.

Mr Robert Goodwill: All institutions that sponsor Tier 4 students are required to undergo an annual basic compliance assessment. In the period May 2010 to September 2016, 968 institutions have had their Tier 4 sponsor status revoked. This number does not include those institutions that failed their basic compliance assessment but retained their licences after having had discretion applied. It does include those that have subsequently had their licences reinstated. The list of current sponsors on the Tier 4 register is updated daily and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/578935/2016-12-19_Tier_4_Register_of_Sponsors.pdf

Refugees: Children

Caroline Ansell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to ensure that 16 to 18 year olds are eligible to benefit from the additional £10 million funding for English language teaching for resettled (a) Syrian and (b) other Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme refugees.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The additional £10 million funding package for those arriving under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) and Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement (VCR) Schemes is for adults only (age 19+). This funding is coming jointly from the Department for Education’s (DfE) Adult Education budget and from the Syrian Resettlement Programme budget.

Compass Contracts

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 16 June 2016 to Question 38987, how many complaints have been made under paragraphs 4.5.1.2 and 4.5.1.3 of schedule 2 of the Compass contracts by complaint type and Compass region in each year since 2013.

Mr Robert Goodwill: In accordance with the statement of requirements, contractors provide reports to the Home Office on specified incidents within specified timescales. The Home Office does not record reports by complaint type and therefore this information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Compass Contracts

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many allegations against asylum accommodation users of (a) assault, (b) damage to property and (c) anti-social behaviour have been reported to her Department by G4S in connection with the operation of Compass asylum accommodation contracts since 2013; how many such allegations have been investigated by her Department or another independent body; and what the outcomes were of such investigations.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Home Office does not record complaints by complainant or by complaint type, therefore this information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Where allegations are made that relate to criminal behaviour the Home Office will ensure that the allegation is raised with the relevant police force for them to investigate.

Police: Counter-terrorism

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many counter terrorism security advisers were employed in each police force in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Mr Ben Wallace: Advice and guidance on protective security and preparedness to terrorist threats is provided by specialist Counter-Terrorism Security Advisors (CTSAs) who operate in every police region.We do not publically provide a breakdown of this funding or resources by force, region or capability for security reasons. The number of CTSAs in post in each year since 2010 was as follows:April 2010 -191 (figure includes Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland)April 2011 – 227 (figure includes Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland)April 2012 – 226 (figure includes Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland)April 2013 – 204 (figure includes Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland)April 2014 – 188 (figures includes Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland)April 2015 - 146 (England and Wales only, this figure includes 4 Counter Terrorism Awareness Advisers, CTAAs, dedicated towards the provision of CT awareness advice).April 2016 – 157 (England and Wales only, this figure includes 20 Counter Terrorism Awareness Advisers dedicated towards the provision of CT awareness advice). The Government’s aims to have 171 staff in post by the end of 2016/17 (145 CTSAs and 26 CTAAs). These planned changes to resource are for the effective and efficient delivery of future advice and guidance, whilst ensuring they maintain their fundamental role as part of wider police capabilities to safeguard the security of the public.

Immigration Officers: Training

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to introduce a training programme for immigration caseworkers on medical evidence of torture.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We consider all asylum claims in a sensitive manner on an individual, objective and impartial basis ensuring that all cases are managed effectively throughout the asylum process to avoid unnecessary delay.All members of staff who make decisions in asylum receive training on inter-national and domestic law and safeguarding issues supplemented by a mentoring programme with an experienced caseworker that can last up to 6 months. Within the training there are specific sections that detail torture and Medico Legal Reports and how they should be used and analysed in asylum claims.Asylum Operations recently received funding from the Asylum Migration and Integration Fund to review and redevelop its training prospectus. As part of that work, Asylum Operations is liaising with a range of external stakeholders - including migrant charities and non-governmental organisations - to ensure a robust and effective safeguarding training product.

Asylum: Deportation

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many failed asylum seekers under the age of 18 were deported in December in each year since 2010.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The number of enforced returns by age is published in table rt_03 (returns data tables) in ‘Immigration Statistics, July - September 2016’, available from the Home Office website at:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/572380/returns2-q3-2016-tables.ods

Refugees: Calais

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has suspended all processing and admission of migrants formerly at Calais.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We have worked closely with the French authorities to support the clearance of the Calais camp and to transfer children eligible to come to the UK. Since 10 October, we have transferred over 750 children from France. The current phase has been concluded. More children will be transferred from across Europe under the Immigration Act in the coming months, including from France.We will continue to meet our obligation under the Dublin Regulation to transfer unaccompanied refugee children to the UK where a family link has been established.

Detainees: Death

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many deaths have occurred in immigration detention centres in each year since 2007.

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people are on suicide watch in immigration detention centres.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The number of deaths in immigration removal centres (IRCs) is a subset of published detention data (table dt_5 and dt_5_q) in the Home Office quarterly Immigration Statistics release.A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics July to September 2016, is available from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/series/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release.All incidents of self harm are treated very seriously and every step is taken to prevent incidents of this nature. Staff at all centres are trained to identify those at risk of self harm so that action can be taken to minimise the risk. Notices in various languages are displayed in IRCs setting out that where a detainee is concerned about a fellow detainee this should be brought to the attention of a member of staff. Formal risk assessments on initial detention and systems for raising concerns at any subsequent point feed into established self harm procedures in every IRC. These are in turn underpinned by the Home Office Operating Standard on the prevention of self-harm and detention services order 06/2008, Assessment Care in Detention Teamwork (ACDT).Management information shows that on 21 December 2016 there were 78 detainees in the immigration detention estate being monitored in line with ACDT procedures. This is provisional management information that is subject to change. it has not been assured to the standard of Official Statistics.

Asylum

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many claims for asylum were refused in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland in each month since January 2016.

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many claims for asylum were granted in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland in each month since January 2016.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I am sorry but the data required to answer the question is not recorded in a way that can be reported on accurately. Such an answer can only be provided at disproportionate cost. The government produces regular data on asylum as part of its Migration Statistics and the latest release can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/572376/asylum2-q3-2016-tables.ods

Home Office: Staff

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) EU and (b) non-EU nationals are employed by (i) her Department, (ii) the UK Border Force and (iii) her Department's other agencies.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Home Office undertakes checks to confirm that potential candidates meet the eligibility requirements to work in the UK. However, the Home Office does not record the nationality of employees on our IT systems and is unable to provide this information.

Refugees: Children

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps the Government has taken to speed up family reunification for unaccompanied refugee children in Europe.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government has, and continues to, work closely with partners across Europe to ensure the timely and effective operation of the Dublin Regulation. We have seconded experts to France and Greece, and we have a long-standing secondee in Italy to support the work on unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in Europe, including the Dublin Regulation. The Government has transferred more than 750 children to the UK in support of the French operation to clear the Calais camp under both the family reunification provisions of the Dublin Regulation and the terms of section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016. Prior to the Calais camp clearance, between 1 January and 1 October, there were over 140 unaccompanied asylum seeking children accepted for transfer from Europe to the UK under the Dublin Regulation.

Asylum: Housing

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultations took place with the National Asylum Seekers stakeholder forum and other interested parties on changing the sharing criteria in asylum accommodation contracts to allow siblings of the same sex to room-share to the age of 20; and if she will make a statement.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultations took place with the National Asylum Seekers stakeholder forum and other interested parties on changes to the sharing criteria of asylum accommodation contracts to allow children up to the age of 16 to share with their parents; and if she will make a statement.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultations took place with the National Asylum Seekers stakeholder forum and other interested parties on changes to the sharing criteria in asylum accommodation contracts to allow willing mothers to use shared non-mother and baby unit accommodation; and if she will make a statement.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultations took place with the National Asylum Seekers stakeholder forum and other interested parties on extending the contracts on asylum accommodation.

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultations took place with the National Asylum Seekers stakeholder forum and other interested parties on changing the sharing criteria in asylum accommodation contracts to allow siblings of opposite sex to room-share to the age of 16; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: In considering the proposal to extend the current contracts the Home Office listened carefully to a range of interested parties, including the evidence that has been given to the Home Affairs Committee and direct feedback from non-governmental organisations’ through regular engagement activity with various stakeholder groups. In extending the contracts the Home Office took the opportunity to make improvements to the contracts that address the concerns that have been raised. We will continue to work closely with a range of stakeholders to continue to improve the operation of the contracts.No changes have been made in relation to the requirements and restrictions on room sharing and the contract continues to require our contractors to comply with national legislation and local authority rules.

Refugees: English Language

Caroline Ansell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the additional £10 million funding for English language teaching announced in September 2016 for refugees from the Syrian Vulnerable Person's Resettlement Scheme and the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme will be made available to those groups.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The additional £10 million English language funding package for those who have been resettled under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement and Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement schemes is available to the local authorities who support adults (age 19+). This funding comes jointly from the Department for Education’s Adult Education budget and from the Syrian Resettlement Programme budget and guidance on how to claim is being issued through the Strategic Migration Partnerships.

Immigration Controls

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what reports her Department has received on (a) staffing shortages and (b) waiting times at passport control at UK airports in the last three months; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Performance Reporting and Analysis Unit (PRAU) sends out the monthly Strategic Performance Report to the Performance and Ops board, the Chief Operating Officer and to the Regional Directors. In addition, PRAU also sends out the Monthly Queue to all regional directors.

Work Permits: Africa

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many work permit applications have been approved for (a) doctors and (b) nurses and auxiliary nurses from (i) Nigeria, (ii) Ghana and (iii) other African countries in each year since 2007.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Work Permit arrangements ended in 2008 and were replaced by the Points Based System. The work permit database has been archived and there are no reporting facilities any longer on this database therefore data for 2006 and 2007 is not available.

Immigrants: Detainees

Gavin Newlands: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the letter from the Minister for Immigration to the Home Affairs Select Committee of 18 November 2016, what review of detention needs is taking place; and what the timescale is for that review.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Following Renfrewshire Council’s refusal of planning permission for a short term holding facility near Glasgow airport the Government is considering its position in relation to the right of appeal and any subsequent review of detention needs in Scotland.

Human Trafficking

Sir Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to collect data on outcomes of victims of human trafficking referred to in the national referral mechanism after they have co-operated with police and provided evidence to assist with prosecutions.

Sarah Newton: As part of our work to evaluate the National Referral Mechanism pilot, we are looking at what data should be gathered in future.

Immigration

Naz Shah: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on how much compensation has been paid as a result of the mis-administration of applications for indefinite leave to remain in 2015.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I am sorry, but the information is not centrally recorded and to provide you with this information would exceed the cost limit, at disproportionate cost.

Emergency Services: Orkney and Shetland

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many emergency services network masts will be built in Orkney and Shetland constituency; and what steps she is taking to ensure that mobile phone services are provided from all four mobile network operators at all such sites.

Brandon Lewis: In delivering the Emergency Services Network (ESN), the mobile network operator EE will deliver up to 291 new mast sites. Government will deliver approximately 230 further sites (known as the “Extended Area Services” (EAS) sites) in the most remote and rural areas of Great Britain.For EAS sites, the principal objective is to provide coverage to meet the needs of the emergency services, but the Home Office is working with the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and DCMS to identify any proposed mast locations which could improve mobile coverage in future, with a view to ensuring these are built to a specification which could accommodate multiple operators.EE has indicated that it is delivering around 200 new sites in Scotland as part of ESN. In addition there are 104 sites in Scotland that are being considered as part of the Extended Area Services (EAS). Delivery of these sites is subject to planning permission and the acquisition of land. There are currently no new sites proposed in the constituency of Inverclyde, either by EE or the EAS as part of ESN.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Construction: Skilled Workers

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of skills shortages in the construction industry; and what steps he is taking to rectify such shortages.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Education (DfE) is responsible for the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), the body that supports training and skills in construction.DfE is currently working closely with employers in the construction industry to develop new apprenticeships for the sector. While evidence suggests there are sufficient learners going through the skills system, with over 200,000 construction qualifications being taken each year, reforms set out in the skills plan (July 2016) will ensure these qualifications become more relevant and meet the industry’s needs.Additionally, the Construction Leadership Council, the business led sector council which advises Government on key strategic issues, has investigated the labour model in the construction industry and commissioned an independent report (published in October 2016), making recommendations for industry and Government. The Government is currently considering the review’s recommendations.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans his Department has for the future of Warm Home Discount payments.

Jesse Norman: The Government announced in the Spending Review in November 2015 that the Warm Home Discount scheme would be extended to 2020/21 at current levels of £320m per year, rising with inflation, to help households who are at risk of fuel poverty with their energy bills.The current regulations last until 31 March 2018 and we plan to consult on any changes to the scheme in 2017.

Companies: Directors

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with which stakeholders he has discussed the representation of employees on company boards since 13 July 2016.

Margot James: The Government is committed to strengthening the worker voice in the boardroom. My Ministerial team and I have had regular meetings with a range of business, employee and other interest groups where we have discussed issues including corporate governance. The Government’s green paper on Corporate Governance Reform explores a range of options for strengthening the worker voice.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether there are any requirements for providers of the Warm Home Discount Scheme to enquire about applicants' long-term physical and mental health.

Jesse Norman: The Warm Home Discount is applied directly to customer accounts by energy suppliers. There is no requirement for providers of the Warm Home Discount Scheme to enquire about applicants' long-term physical and mental health; however, Ofgem does require energy suppliers to keep a ‘Priority Services Register’ of its domestic customers, who may be vulnerable and require Priority Services.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when he expects the outcome of the Warm Home Discount Scheme consultation, launched on 8 April 2016, to be published.

Jesse Norman: The Government’s response to the Warm Home Discount (WHD) 2016/17 consultation was published on 29 June 2016 and can be found here:www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/531871/DECC_WHD_Government_response_FINAL_22_06_16.pdfIt gives a summary of the responses that were received to the consultation and detailed the changes that were introduced to the scheme for 2016/17.

Universities: Private Sector

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to help facilitate collaboration between universities and the private sector.

Joseph Johnson: The Government has taken action across a range of areas – skills, research, infrastructure and facilities, knowledge exchange, access to finance, intellectual property and tax incentives - to ensure the strong development of university-business collaboration and the application of research to support sustainable economic growth.At the Autumn Statement, the Government committed an extra £2 billion a year in research and development by 2020- 21, including for the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. The Chancellor confirmed a further £100m support for collaboration between universities across the range of knowledge exchange activity and a further £100m for Innovate UK for the Biomedical Catalyst.The creation of UK Research & Innovation - bringing together the Research Councils, Innovate UK and the research and knowledge exchange functions of the Higher Education Funding Council for England is an opportunity to take a strategic approach and to simplify funding arrangements for research, innovation and commercialisation.

Green Investment Bank

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if the Government will publish a comparative assessment of the effect on the public purse of (a) a full sale, (b) retaining full or partial government ownership and (c) other ownership options of the Green Investment Bank.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government has set out its plans for the sale of the Green Investment Bank in the document “Green Investment Bank: sale of shares” (Cm 9214). As stated in this report, the Government is fully reflecting the National Audit Office’s recommendations on how Government should approach such assets sales, which includes preparing a full business case and undertaking a robust valuation process. The Government response to the Environmental Audit Committee report ‘The Future of the Green Investment Bank’ (Cm 9201) set out alternative options considered for the sale of the Green Investment Bank. The Government has committed to lay a report before Parliament on the sale of the Green Investment Bank, as soon as reasonably practicable after a disposal of shares has taken place, and this is also a requirement in the Enterprise Act 2016.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Equality

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, who the diversity champion is on his departmental board.

Margot James: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has two diversity and inclusion champions on the departmental board - Angie Ridgwell (Director General, Finance and Corporate Services) and Gareth Davies (Director General, Business and Science).

Hinkley Point C Power Station

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what sanctions are available to his Department should construction of Hinkley Point C run behind schedule or over budget.

Jesse Norman: EDF has a strong incentive to build Hinkley Point C on time (i.e. by 2025) because of the loss of expected revenues after that time if not. If EDF does not start generating four years after 2025, then there will be reductions to the contract term; this means that for every day that HPC is late, the period of time where EDF gets increased certainty on the price of its electricity will be reduced. If HPC is not generating electricity by 2033, there is an option in the contract to cancel the contract. Finally, EDF will pay any extra costs if the cost of building the plant goes over budget.

Nuclear Power Stations: Construction

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many proposals have been submitted for the construction of new nuclear power stations since 2000.

Jesse Norman: Since 2000 there has been one proposal put forward for a development consent order for a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point C.

Green Investment Bank

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will undertake an environmental impact assessment of current and previous activities of the Government's preferred bidder for the UK Green Investment Bank; and if he will publish any such assessment before the sale of the Government's shares is agreed.

Mr Nick Hurd: As part of the sale process, the Government has asked potential investors to confirm their commitment to the Green Investment Bank’s (GIB) green values and investment principles and how they propose to protect them. Government does not intend to undertake an environmental impact assessment on any potential bidders for GIB. The Government has committed to lay a report before Parliament on the sale of the Green Investment Bank, as soon as reasonably practicable after a disposal of shares has taken place, and this is also a requirement in the Enterprise Act 2016.

Mining: Pensions

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much is held in the investment reserve funds for the (a) Mineworkers' Pension Scheme and (b) British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme.

Jesse Norman: The investment reserve for the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme totalled £1,066m at the last valuation (dated 30 September 2014). For the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme, the investment fund stood at £1,701m when last valued on 31 March 2015.

Mineworkers' Pension Scheme

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will assess the balance of the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme surplus-sharing arrangements.

Jesse Norman: The presence of the guarantee has enabled the scheme trustees to invest so as to target surpluses; this has resulted in a 30% increase in payments to members. For this reason, we believe the existing arrangements work well and are fair to all parties.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the value of (a) staffing expenditure, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure by his Department and its arms-length bodies in whole or in part in Yorkshire and the Humber in 2016-17.

Margot James: HM Treasury publishes a country and regional breakdown of spend across Government.The latest publication can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016.

Industry

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when he expects to publish the consultation on the Government's industrial strategy.

Mr Nick Hurd: We will be publishing a discussion paper shortly which will form part of an ongoing open and collaborative dialogue to develop the new Industrial Strategy.

Pubs Code Adjudicator

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to ensure that the Pubs Code Adjudicator notifies pub tenants of (a) his financial interests in large pub-owning businesses, (b) the size and value of his existing shareholding in Fleurets and (c) the value of loans owned to him by Fleurets.

Margot James: The Pubs Code Adjudicator has no financial interests in large pub-owning businesses. The Adjudicator updated the register of interests with further details of his shareholding and loans with Fleurets Holdings Ltd on 20 December. The register of interests is available on the Pubs Code Adjudicator website.

Tickets: Sales

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will publish the evidence collected by the Competition and Markets Authority supporting its compliance review into consumer protection law in the online secondary tickets market which was published on 19 December 2016.

Margot James: The Competition and Markets Authority is an independent enforcement body and draws on a range of sources when carrying out such investigations. The Department does not hold this information.

Industry: North East

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much funding to which industries in the North East the Government plans to provide (a) over the next three years; and if he will estimate how many jobs will be created by that finding.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Industrial Strategy is a critical part of the Government’s ambition to build an economy that works for everyone. Government funding for business support across England is awarded to local areas via Growth Deals agreed with Local Enterprise Partnerships.The Growth Deal agreed with the North East’s Local Enterprise Partnership will see nearly £330m invested in the North East economy between 2016 and 2021. This investment in innovation, skills, business support, transport, and economic assets will drive economic growth in the North East. Over the lifetime of the Deal the Local Enterprise Partnership estimates that up to 5,000 new jobs could be created and up to £130m additional public and private investment.

Industry: North East

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how he plans to support industries located in the North East that receive funding in the event of the UK leaving the EU.

Margot James: The Government recognises the importance of ensuring regions and organisations have stability and certainty in the period leading up to our departure from the European Union. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in October that funding for European Structural and Investment Fund projects signed before or after the Autumn Statement, and which continue after we have left the EU, will be honoured by the Treasury if they provide strong value for money and are in line with domestic strategic priorities.Leaving the EU means we will be able to take our own decisions about how we deliver the policy objectives previously targeted by EU funding. Over the coming months we will consult closely with stakeholders to review all EU funding schemes, thereby ensuring that all funding commitments serve the UK’s national interest.

Trade Marks

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the Government's policy is on retaining the (a) CE and ATEX marks and (b) UK as a location to certify products for the European market.

Margot James: The Government is committed to ensuring that only safe products are placed on the UK market now and in the future. The Government will engage with business and other stakeholders to assess the risks and opportunities from exiting the EU and ensure that the UK system continues to meets the needs of British businesses and consumers.

Standardisation: EU Law

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy for the UK to retain membership of (a) the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization, (b) the European Committee for Standardization and (c) other European standards bodies after the UK has left the EU.

Joseph Johnson: The European Standards Organisations are not EU bodies, though they have a special status in the EU. We are working with BSI, the UK’s national standards body, to ensure that our future relationship with the European Standards Organisations continues to support a productive, open and competitive business environment in the UK.

Green Investment Bank

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to ensure that any proceeds from the sale of the Green Investment Bank are greater than or equivalent to the 10 per cent portfolio return forecast by that Bank in its latest Annual Report.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government has set out its plans for the sale of the Green Investment Bank in the document “Green Investment Bank: sale of shares” (Cm 9214) laid before Parliament on 3 March 2016. As set out in that report, one of the Government’s primary objectives for a sale is to achieve value for money for the UK taxpayer.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department permits its employees to join a credit union through payroll deductions; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was created on 14 July 2016. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) were merged to create this new department.The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy does not currently have the facility for staff to join a credit union through payroll deductions.Some Government departments offer this facility and it is currently being looked into by the central civil service HR team. Once a decision has been made, BEIS will consider these recommendations as part of its ongoing work to ensure staff are offered a benefits package that is current and reflective of the wider Civil Service.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

USA: Travel Restrictions

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions (a) he and (b) his Department have had with the (i) incoming and (ii) outgoing US administrations on the potential banning of certain groups of UK citizens from travel to that country.

Sir Alan Duncan: We have not held substantive discussions with either the incoming or outgoing Administrations regarding any such possibility.

China: Buddhism

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in China on sentencing of Drugdra, Lobsang Khedrub, Lobsang Gephel, Lodro, Ta're Kyi, Bonkho Kyi, Tsultrim (Trotsik Tsultrim), Tsultrim (Tsulte), Akyakya and Losang Sonam for their involvement in the Dalai Lama's 80th birthday celebrations.

Alok Sharma: We have concerns about human rights and freedoms in Tibet. We have not raised these specific cases with the Chinese Government. However, the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), raised our concerns about human rights in Tibet with the Chinese Government at the UK-China Strategic Dialogue on 20 December. We also raised our concerns about Tibet and a number of individuals with the Chinese Government at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 27 October. I attended the opening of the dialogue. We have recently received information on the sentencing of these individuals, and are in touch with our Embassy in Beijing to obtain further details.

Burma: Rohingya

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect (a) the Rohingya population in Myanmar and (b) children in that community.

Alok Sharma: The Government has repeatedly raised concerns about the plight of the Rohingya community in Burma. I last raised this when I met the Burmese Minister of Construction on 29 November. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my noble Friend, the Rt Hon. Baroness Anelay of St Johns DBE also raised our concerns when she visited Burma from 9-12 November. We are particularly concerned for the welfare of the estimated 3,400 children who were suffering from severe acute malnutrition prior to the flare up in violence in Rakhine following the 9 October attacks on the Burmese border posts. We have called on the Government of Burma to resume immediately humanitarian aid and to conduct an independent investigation into allegations of human rights violations. The Investigation Commission has now been established and will report back by 31 January 2017.

China: Human Rights

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether human rights issues were raised during the recent (a) UK-China Economic and Trade Dialogue and (b) UK-China People to People Dialogue.

Alok Sharma: The Secretary of State for Health, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), raised human rights issues in his discussions with Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong on 5 December during the UK-China 'People to People' dialogue. Human Rights issues were not raised at the UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue on 10 November.

Gambia: Elections

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the President of The Gambia on (a) the outcome of the election and (b) protection of democratic rights in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​I spoke directly to the President-elect, Mr Adama Barrow, to congratulate him on his victory and to offer the UK’s support. We are deeply concerned by President Jammeh’s recent rejection of the elections’ clear and legitimate result and strongly condemn any attempt to disrupt the peaceful, constitutional transfer of power. I also condemned President Jammeh’s refusal to accept the results in a statement on 14 December. We welcome the clear, unified statement of the UN Security Council on 10 December, as well as the efforts of the Economic Community of West African States to impress on President Jammeh the need to respect the will of the people and ensure a peaceful handover of power.

Tanzania: Foreign Relations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the level of political cooperation between the UK and Tanzania.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK-Tanzania partnership is strong and broad. We are proud of our long standing trade, security and people to people links that bring real benefits to both countries. Our amibition is clear - to work in partnership with Tanzania to increase bilateral trade and investment, support development and generate prosperity and employment for both our countries. ​​We want to help Tanzania achieve its vision of becoming a middle income country.Our top priorities are increasing trade and investment, tackling international crime such as corruption, drug trafficking, the illegal wildlife trade and supporting Tanzania's regional lead in bringing peace and security to Burundi.Our High Commission in Dar es Salaam maintains close and frequent communication with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Government of Tanzania. Our team in London is also well known to the Tanzanian High Commission.

Zambia: Foreign Relations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the level of political cooperation between the UK and Zambia.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK and the Republic of Zambia continue to maintain a close bilateral relationship, with co-operation in a range of areas including development, security, trade and investment and international affairs. Zambian Vice-President Wina Inonge visited London in November 2015 to host an investment conference and my Rt Hon. Friend the former Minister of State for International Development Minister (Nick Hurd) visited Zambia in May 2016. Zambia held elections in August this year; the British High Commission has continued to maintain regular engagement with the Zambian Government since then, focusing particularly on supporting the government with its plans for economic reform.

Tibet: Visits Abroad

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to secure visits to Tibet by UK diplomatic personnel.

Alok Sharma: We regularly press the Chinese authorities for permission for a Foreign and Commonwealth Office official or Minister to visit the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). We last raised this issue with the Chinese authorities at the UK/China Human Rights Dialogue on 27 October. The Chinese have yet to grant our request.The last visit by an FCO official to the TAR was in June 2014, and the last Minister to visit was the Hon. Member for Bury South (Mr Lewis) in September 2009.

China: Detainees

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has raised with the Chinese authorities the detention of the family of Tashi Rabten.

Alok Sharma: We are deeply concerned by reports that Tashi Rabten was involved in an act of self-immolation in Gansu Province on 8 December, and that members of his family have been detained by the Chinese authorities. We are seeking further information on the situation.

Tashi Wangchuk

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the case of Tashi Wangchuk was raised in the recent UK-China Human Rights Dialogue; and if he will make a statement.

Alok Sharma: We raised the case of the Tibetan language advocate, Tashi Wangchuk, at the UK-China human rights dialogue, which took place on 27 October. We urged the Chinese authorities to release him from detention.

Tibet: Visits Abroad

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will seek to arrange a ministerial visit to Tibet.

Alok Sharma: We regularly press the Chinese authorities for permission for a Foreign and Commonwealth Office official or Minister to visit the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). We last raised this issue with the Chinese authorities at the UK/China Human Rights Dialogue on 27 October. The Chinese have yet to grant our request.The last visit by an FCO official to the TAR was in June 2014, and the last Minister to visit was the Hon. Member for Bury South (Mr Lewis) in September 2009.

Social Networking: EU Law

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with officials (a) of the European Commission, (b) the EU member states and (c) of the European Parliament on the regulation of social media operators.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Mr Johnson) has had no such discussions.

Andargachew Tsege

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has formally requested the release of Mr Andargachew Tsege; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK Government has taken every opportunity to raise Mr Tsege’s case at the very highest levels in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Government are in no doubt about our concern for Mr Tsege and the priority we place on his wellbeing. We have not directly called for Mr Tsege’s release. Britain does not interfere in the legal system of other countries by challenging convictions, any more than we would accept interference in our judicial system. Our priority is to ensure Mr Tsege’s wellbeing and access to legal advice. We believe that calling for his release would not be successful at this stage and could put at risk the progress that has been made, including our access to Mr Tsege.

Kashmir

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the governments of India and Pakistan on the situation in Kashmir; and if he will make a statement.

Alok Sharma: The UK's long-standing position, held by successive Governments, is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator. We encourage both sides to maintain positive dialogue, but the pace and scope of this is for them to determine. During her visit to India in November, my Rt Hon. Friend the Prime Minister the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) discussed a range of issues with Prime Minister Modi, including Kashmir. On his trip to Pakistan in November 2016 , my Rt Hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) reiterated the call for dialogue, while also reiterating that the pace and scope of any dialogue was for India and Pakistan to determine. At that time, he also called for an end to the violence over the Line of Control, and for both sides to exercise restraint.

Turkey: Assassination

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his (a) Russian and (b) Turkish counterpart on the shooting of the Russian Ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, in Ankara on 19 December 2016.

Sir Alan Duncan: The murder of Russia's Ambassador to Turkey, Mr Andrei Karlov, on 19 December was a cowardly attack condemned by the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) in a statement the same day. Immediately following the shooting, I telephoned the Russian Ambassador to London to offer my own condolences.The Prime Minister has written to President Putin to offer her condolences and the Foreign Secretary signed the book of condolence at the Russian Embassy.The Foreign Secretary and I have both offered the UK's support to Turkey as they investigate the shooting.

Bangladesh and Burma: Rohingya

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the governments of Burma and Bangladesh on the Rohingya people in those countries; and if he will make a statement.

Alok Sharma: The Government is deeply concerned about the welfare of the Rohingya community in Burma, especially in light of a number of security operations launched in response to the attack on police posts on 9 October. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers and our Ambassador in Rangoon have raised our concerns at the highest levels with the Government of Burma on a number of occasions in recent weeks. On 29 November I raised the issue of the Rohingya with the visiting Burmese Minister for Construction, and relayed calls for the immediate resumption of humanitarian access to Northern Rakhine. I reiterated our call for an independent investigation into allegations of human rights abuses. In a meeting with the Bangladesh High Commissioner, also on 29 November, I welcomed the existing humanitarian assistance provided by the Bangladesh Government to date and urged the government not to return into danger people who seek refuge in Bangladesh.

Slavery

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking (a) in Mauritania and (b) internationally to tackle slavery.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The British Government continues to make representations on human rights concerns at the highest levels with the Mauritanian government. Most recently, the Head of the British Office in Nouakchott raised the issue of slavery alongside EU Heads of Mission in a meeting with the Mauritanian Prime Minister and eight other ministers on 9 December 2016.The British Government also works internationally to tackle slavery. In December 2016, Baroness Anelay of St Johns met the UN Special Rapporteur on Modern Slavery, Ms Urmila Bhoola, and Mauritanian anti-slavery activist Biram Dah Abeid to discuss concerns about slavery in Mauritania.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many times in 2016 he met the Russian ambassador to discuss the humanitarian situation in Aleppo.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) summoned the Russian Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 15 December to make clear the British Government's deep concern over the situation in Aleppo and Russia's actions in Syria. I have met the Russian Ambassador twice since my appointment as Minister for Europe and the Americas. We had a thorough discussion on Syria in August 2016 during which I also expressed the UK's concern about the situation in Aleppo and our shared interest in working together on a political settlement in Syria.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Saudi Arabian civilians killed as a result of Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia since the recent suspension of the ceasefire in Yemen.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: More than 90 Saudi civilians have lost their lives in this conflict, through shelling over the border into Saudi Arabia, and more than 500, including women and children, have been injured. The Houthis have frequently fired mortar bombs and rockets into Saudi territory. In October, the Houthis launched a Scud missile which flew 300 miles into Saudi Arabia, exploding outside Taif, a city the size of Birmingham that has a population of 1.2 million and lies close to Mecca. It is critical that all parties renew their commitment to a Cessation of Hostilities for the sake of the people of Yemen. A political solution is the best way to bring long-term stability to Yemen and end the conflict.

Syria: Armed Conflict

Naz Shah: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the evacuation of civilians from eastern Aleppo since 14 December 2016.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​On 19 December, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2328, which demands full access for the UN across Syria. The Resolution specifically requested the UN to monitor evacuations from eastern Aleppo. The UK strongly supported this action in view of our profound concerns at reports of atrocities taking place as eastern Aleppo was being evacuated. The UN has now reported that evacuations from eastern Aleppo are complete. It remains essential that the regime and its backers allow the UN full and unhindered access across the whole of Syria.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Office: Equality

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, who the diversity champion is on his departmental board.

Kris Hopkins: The Northern Ireland Office recognises the importance of embedding diversity in everything it does. The Permanent Secretary of the NIO, Sir Jonathan Stephens KCB is the overall Diversity Champion at board level. The PUS is supported in his role as NIO Diversity Champion by the Department’s two directors who champion a number of specific diversity categories. Further details are provided below: NIO DirectorDiversity Category ChampionedColin PerryBlack and Minority EthnicLesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and TransgenderMark LarmourDisabilityOther protected characteristics

Northern Ireland Office: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether his Department permits its employees to join a credit union through payroll deductions; and if he will make a statement.

Kris Hopkins: The Northern Ireland Office currently does not have a policy to provide access to credit union services through payroll deductions. Staff can however make arrangements to contribute to a credit union via direct debit.

Attorney General

Slavery: Prosecutions

Mike Wood: To ask the Attorney General, what steps the Government is taking to increase the number of prosecutions for modern slavery.

Robert Buckland: We have the strongest legal framework in place including the Modern Slavery Act, which came into force in July 2015. The Law Officers are supporting the Prime Minister’s Taskforce on Modern Slavery, and the CPS continues to see a year on year increase in the numbers of prosecutions.

Islamic State: Genocide

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Attorney General, for what reasons no reference was made in the Government's proposals for the prosecution of ISIS made at the UN on 15 December 2016 to genocide committed against Christians whereas specific reference was made to other minority groups; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Wright: The campaign to bring Daesh to justice is about achieving justice for all of Daesh’s victims, in Iraq, Syria and across the world. This has been the case from the outset of the campaign and is what I said to the UN when I spoke on 15 December 2016.

Department for International Development

Department for International Development: Equality

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, who the diversity champion is on her departmental board.

Rory Stewart: The diversity champion on the Departmental Board is Joy Hutcheon, Director General for Finance and Corporate Performance.

Syria: Overseas Aid

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent reports she has received on the availability and accessibility of aid routes into Aleppo.

Rory Stewart: The city of Aleppo is now fully under the control of the Assad regime. The UN has gained partial access to most neighbourhoods in eastern Aleppo, formerly under opposition control, to carry out assessments and start responding to needs. The UK supports fully the UN’s call for unhindered access to all areas of Aleppo in order to meet humanitarian needs.

Developing Countries: Mental Health

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much Official Development Assistance funding was provided to mental health projects in the past three years.

James Wharton: DFID spent approximately £15.3 million over the last three years on bilateral projects exclusively focused on improving mental health services and on related research.DFID funding has, for example, helped Ghana establish a Mental Health Authority and train 3,953 health workers, and generated evidence on how to strengthen mental health care in poor countries. A further £117 million was provided to improve the health of people affected by the conflict in Syria, and a core part of this is psychosocial support and counselling. In addition DFID’s wider work including our support to multilateral health organisations contributes to improving mental health care.

Syria: Overseas Aid

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what humanitarian assistance the Government is providing to (a) orphaned children, (b) the elderly, (c) the sick and (d) other vulnerable groups among Syrian civilians.

Rory Stewart: The UK has pledged £2.3 billion in response to the Syria crisis, our largest ever response to a single humanitarian crisis. With this funding, we are providing life-saving support to millions of Syrians, including some of the most vulnerable. Through UN and NGO partners, we are delivering food, clean water, shelter, and healthcare. Between February 2012 and August 2016, we provided over 16.4 million monthly food rations, medical support to over 3.7 million people, and relief packages to over 5.5 million people (including essential winter and household items, such as blankets).When carrying out humanitarian assessments and responding to humanitarian needs, DFID and our partners take into account the specific needs of those who may be more vulnerable. In Syria and the region, for example, we have funded the vaccination of 500,000 children against childhood diseases, provided 200,000 flu vaccinations for the elderly and other vulnerable groups, and distributed a range of health support targeted at conditions prevalent in the elderly and those with ongoing health needs, including diabetes and high blood pressure.Our partners prioritise the identification and protection of unaccompanied children, and provide them with legal advisory services to mitigate the protection risks that they face.

St Helena: Airports

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Government plans to undertake additional environmental impact assessments ahead of any further construction works required at St Helena airport.

James Wharton: The main construction phase of the St Helena Airport is now complete. There are no plans currently for further construction works. Should that situation change, we would expect the environmental impact of any future works to be fully considered.

Overseas Aid

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her policy is on the Government's long-term commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income on overseas development assistance.

Priti Patel: Meeting the 0.7 per cent target for overseas aid is a manifesto commitment. It is enshrined in law and the Government has been unequivocal that we will continue to honour that promise, including reaffirmation by the Prime Minister on 14 December. Alongside our world-class diplomacy commitments and spending two per cent of our GDP on defence, upholding our manifesto commitments on UK aid is vital to securing Britain’s place in the world, helping those less fortunate than ourselves, and exporting economic prosperity, security and stability in the national interest.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether older people will be included within the indicators used to measure government performance against the Sustainable Development Goals.

James Wharton: DFID is working across the international system to ensure that developing country data and systems for reporting against the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicators are appropriately disaggregated, as laid out within Agenda 2030. This includes for older people.

South Sudan and Yemen: Overseas Aid

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, for what reasons the Government reduced the bilateral aid budget to (a) South Sudan and (b) Yemen in 2016-17.

Rory Stewart: DFID has published 2016/17 budgets by department. The allocations are continually reviewed throughout the year and may increase to respond to changing needs. For example, support for Yemen will increase from £90 million in 2015/16 to £112 million in 2016/17 in light of the humanitarian crisis. Final spending figures for all departments will be confirmed in the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2016.

Africa: Poverty

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure changes to the bilateral aid budgets for (a) Rwanda, (b) Kenya and (c) Ghana do not affect poverty reduction in those countries.

James Wharton: The UK remains committed to supporting poverty reduction in Rwanda, Kenya and Ghana. Kenya and Ghana are now lower-middle income countries and as such are starting to transition from aid.Our assistance in all three countries strengthens health and education and supports inclusive economic growth and job creation, which are essential to sustainably reduce poverty and allow a managed transition from aid. Our bilateral assistance is complemented by funding through DFID’s centrally-managed programmes and support through multilaterals and other Government Departments.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to ensure the Sustainable Development Goals are implemented in the UK.

James Wharton: The UK was at the forefront of negotiating the Global Goals for Sustainable Development and we will be at the forefront of delivering them. We have implemented the Goals across all of Government’s work, the delivery of which is tracked through Single Departmental Plans.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals on older women.

James Wharton: As the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were launched in January 2016, it is too early to make an assessment of the effect of their implementation. However, the ambition of the SDGs to Leave No One Behind is clear.The impact of the Sustainable Development Goals will be tracked through country data and systems for reporting using the SDGs.

CDC: Poverty

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what mechanisms her Department has in place to ensure that spending of public funds by the Commonwealth Development Corporation is focused on the reduction of poverty.

Rory Stewart: We have radically transformed CDC over the last five years to ensure their investments are targeted where they are needed most and have greatest impact in the world’s poorest places.Since 2012, all new investments made by CDC have been focussed on Africa and South Asia where 80% of the world’s poorest live, and where CDC investment can have the greatest development impact. All investments made by CDC are made in accordance with the Investment Policy agreed with DFID. This ensures that CDC invests responsibly and transparently, creating jobs and promoting good governance.Through its Development Impact Grid, developed in conjunction with DFID, CDC is incentivised to specifically invest in the poorer countries and regions and across those sectors that have the highest propensity to create jobs, such as infrastructure, agribusiness and financial services. Creating jobs for the world’s poorest countries is a key driver in reducing poverty. In 2015, CDC-backed businesses helped create over a million new direct and indirect jobs (41% Africa and 59% South Asia).

Overseas Aid

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to improve relationship management with bilateral government partners through transition by risk management and more coordinated communications.

Rory Stewart: The Independent Commission on Aid Impact (ICAI) published a review of DFID’s approach to managing exit and transition in its development partnerships in November 2016. My Department will publish its response shortly to recommendations made in the ICAI report, including on cross-government management of relationships and risk, and on communication.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that its policies focus on means to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

James Wharton: The Government has placed the Global Goals for Sustainable Development at the centre of its international development efforts and its UK Aid Strategy. The internal Business Plans of all relevant DFID departments and country offices include in their longer-term objectives how they will contribute to achieving the vision of the Global Goals.

Non-governmental Organisations

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking regularly to report on its funding for non-governmental organisations.

James Wharton: All of DFID’s funding including for NGO’s is subject to rigorous review processes, including completion of annual performance reviews. Reports from these annual reviews and other project documentation are available on DFID’s Devtracker which can be found at https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/DFIDs Annual Report for 2015/16 was published on 13 July providing details of the results DFID achieved through a range of delivery partners. This can be found on our website at www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfid-annual-report-2011-2012

Israel: Palestinians

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to support the creation of an international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Rory Stewart: The UK is supportive of people-to-people (co-existence) programmes that bring Israelis and Palestinians together to break down barriers and build trust. Ministers are assessing options for how the UK can do more to support work in this area.

Overseas Aid

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what mechanisms are in place within government to ensure that development considerations are taken account of in wider government bilateral relationships.

Rory Stewart: The National Security Council, of which the Secretary of State is a Member, is the main forum for collective discussion of the government’s objectives for national security, foreign policy and international development. The Secretary of State for International Development is also a member of the European Union Exit and Trade Committee, which oversees the negotiations on the withdrawal from the European Union and policy on international trade, the Committee for Tackling Extremism in Communities, and the Committee for Tackling Modern Slavery and People Trafficking.Coordination at working level is provided by sub-groups and overseen by the Cabinet Office secretariats.Overseas, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is responsible for leading the UK’s relationship with the host country and for ensuring a coherent cross-government approach that reflects all government priorities, including development.

Overseas Aid

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to improve transparency and accountability on its commitments to end aid or change aid relationships.

Rory Stewart: The Independent Commission on Aid Impact (ICAI) published its review of DFID’s approach to managing exit and transition in its development partnerships in November 2016. My Department will shortly publish its response to recommendations made in the ICAI report, including the reporting of aid relationships following the end or transition of a DFID country programme.DFID is a leader on aid transparency. The Secretary of State set out her vision for even greater transparency in the Bilateral and Multilateral Development Reviews published on 1 December. DFID will provide detail for how this can be achieved in due course.

CDC

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that it maintains accountability and oversight of the use of public funds by the Commonwealth Development Corporation.

Rory Stewart: DFID is an active and engaged shareholder. Our influence over the strategic direction of CDC is evident from the changes that CDC has undergone over the last 5/6 years, in which we have played a key role.DFID, as sole shareholder, sets the company’s investment policy – outlining which countries CDC should invest in, the types of investments it makes, and setting the performance targets CDC must reach. DFID appoints the Chair and certain other members of the Board, and holds the Board accountable for delivery of CDC’s five year strategy and for achieving the performance targets set in the Investment Policy.Management has delegated authority from the Board to make investment decisions, meet corporate objectives and financial regulatory obligations.DFID exercises shareholder oversight through close contact with both Board and management, including via Quarterly Shareholder Meetings held to review progress and performance (financial, development impact, risk management, investment pipeline forecasts) and Annual Meetings with the Board.DFID’s oversight of CDC is scrutinised by the International Development Committee, the National Audit Office, UK Government Investments, the Treasury and the Public Accounts Committee. The National Audit Office recently described DFID’s governance arrangements as ‘thorough’ in its recent value for money study.

Developing Countries: Renewable Energy

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of UK aid expenditure on decentralised renewable energy on rural communities; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing such aid expenditure.

James Wharton: In programming new activities, DFID works with its partners to identify priorities and establish needs across the energy spectrum, covering on-grid as well as decentralised off-grid renewable energy.All DFID projects are monitored through regular annual reviews, which are published on the development tracker section of the DFID website. For example, the Renewable Energy and Adaptation to Climate Technologies project has increased access to decentralised renewable energy for approximately 560,000 people in East Africa.

EU Aid

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Government plans to include future arrangements for the allocation of development funds previously distributed by EU institutions in its negotiation plan on leaving the EU.

James Wharton: Leaving the EU means we will want to take our own decisions about how to deliver the policy objectives previously targeted by EU funding. Over the coming months we will consult closely with stakeholders to ensure that any ongoing funding commitments best serve the UK‘s national interest.

Department for International Development: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department permits its employees to join a credit union through payroll deductions; and if she will make a statement.

Rory Stewart: I can confirm my department currently does not have the facility to allow staff to join a credit union through payroll deductions. Staff can still make arrangements to contribute to a credit union via direct debit.

Developing Countries: Electricity

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many people globally she estimates (a) are without reliable access to electricity and (b) will be without reliable access to electricity in 2030.

James Wharton: The latest report of the Sustainable Energy For All Global Tracking Framework (coordinated by the World Bank and the International Energy Agency) estimates that 1.1 billion people, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, lacked reliable access to electricity in 2012. The report notes that progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal target of universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services by 2030 has accelerated. Faster progress is needed if the target is to be achieved, however.DFID is working with our partners, including the World Bank, African Development Bank and Asian Development Bank, to raise and channel the public and private finance needed to reach the target.

Department for Education

English Language: Education

Naz Shah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much was provided for English for speakers of other languages classes in (a) Yorkshire and the Humber, (b) Bradford district and (c) Bradford West constituency in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013, (iii) 2014 and (iv) 2015.

Robert Halfon: The table shows how much was spent from the Adult Skills Budget on ESOL courses in Bradford district and Bradford West constituency and Yorkshire and the Humber since the 2011/12 academic year:  2011/122012/132013/142014/152015/16Bradford£1,850,000£2,100,000£1,860,000£1,460,000£1,420,000Of which, Bradford West£980,000£1,020,000£810,000£600,000£570,000Yorkshire and the Humber Total£10,400,000£11,700,000£9,800,000£9,300,000£7,800,000Note: - Figures are rounded to the nearest £10,000, except for the Total which is rounded to the nearest £100,000- Data is based on funding estimated from course type and learner characteristics held on the Individualised Learner Records, and may differ from actual spend- Geography is based on the learner’s postcodeESOL provision is funded through the Adult Skills Budget and this budget has been maintained for the core adult skills participation budgets in cash terms at £1.5bn. Colleges and training providers continue to have the freedom and flexibility to determine how they use their AEB, working with LEPs and local commissioners to determine what the appropriate distribution of funding should be to best meet local needs. It is, therefore, the responsibility of providers to plan which ESOL courses they deliver locally, within their resources

English Language: Education

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much has been spent on providing ESOL courses in the city of Hull in each year since 2010.

Robert Halfon: The table shows how much was spent from the Adult Skills Budget on ESOL courses in the city of Hull in each year since the 2011/12 academic year: 2011/122012/132013/142014/152015/16Kingston upon Hull£640,000£740,000£800,000£790,000£730,000Note: - Figures are rounded to the nearest £10,000- Data is based on funding estimated from course type and learner characteristics held on the Individualised Learner Records, and may differ from actual spend- Geography is based on the learner’s postcodeESOL provision is funded through the Adult Skills Budget and this budget has been maintained for the core adult skills participation budgets in cash terms at £1.5bn. Colleges and training providers continue to have the freedom and flexibility to determine how they use their AEB, working with LEPs and local commissioners to determine what the appropriate distribution of funding should be to best meet local needs. It is, therefore, the responsibility of providers to plan which ESOL courses they deliver locally, within their resources.

Apprentices

Jo Churchill: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeship places are available in (a) Suffolk, (b) East Anglia and (c) England and Wales; and how many such places are vacant.

Robert Halfon: The table shows the number of apprenticeship vacancies advertised on the official ‘Find an apprenticeship’ website, however there are a number of additional routes for an individual to apply for an apprenticeship, including directly to employers or training providers. Data is not collected on vacancies available via these routes.Apprenticeship vacancies by region, as at 30 November 2016:RegionVacanciesEast Anglia720Suffolk60England24,050Notes:- Data is from the Find an apprenticeship website- East Anglia contains the following Local Authority Districts: Babergh, Breckland, Broadland, Cambridge, East Cambridgeshire, Fenland, Forest Heath, Great Yarmouth, Huntingdonshire, Ipswich, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Mid Suffolk, North Norfolk, Norwich, Peterborough, South Cambridgeshire, South Norfolk, St Edmundsbury, Suffolk Coastal, and Waveney- Suffolk contains the following Local Authority Districts: Mid Suffolk and Suffolk Coastal

Central Sussex College

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 9 September 2016 to Question 45854, what recent assessment she has made of the future of the Central Sussex College in Haywards Heath.

Robert Halfon: The Sussex Area Review, which included Central Sussex College, was undertaken earlier this year and a report of the review was published on 29 November 2016. It can be found on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sussex-further-education-area-review-report.Following the recommendations of the review, Central Sussex College and Chichester College announced in November 2016 that they are working towards a potential merger of the two colleges. Government will continue to work with both colleges to secure a high quality and financially resilient merged college that meets the educational and economic needs of the Sussex areaCentral Sussex College is closing its Hayward Heath campus in summer 2017 and with the college, we are continuing to work with West Sussex County Council to secure a future educational use of the site.

Apprentices

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2016 to Question 52226, what assessment she has made of the potential effect that advances in robotics will have on job opportunities for low-skilled apprenticeship graduates.

Robert Halfon: An assessment has not been made of the potential effect that advances in robotics will have on job opportunities for low-skilled apprenticeship graduates.Employers know the skills they need better than anyone else, which is why they are developing the new apprenticeship standards which describe the skills, knowledge and behaviours an apprentice needs to be competent in a defined occupation.The 2020 Vision sets out the key elements of our strategy to further address skills shortages and stimulate economic growth through reforms to apprenticeships. Standards have already been developed in sectors where they have not been used before, ensuring the benefits are felt across the economy.Our strategy will ensure employers have the opportunity to develop and access the skills they need by increasing the relevance and quality of apprenticeships.

Manufacturing Industries: Training

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much the Government is investing in skills to support the fourth industrial revolution.

Robert Halfon: This Government is investing in a wide range of programmes which contribute to increasing the technological skills base needed to be globally competitive. For example, the funding available to the FE sector to support adult participation will be £3.41bn by 2019-20. We are investing around £80m to support the creation of 5 new National Colleges. These centres of high-tech training will ensure the UK has skilled people in industries crucial to economic growth – high speed rail, nuclear, onshore oil and gas, digital skills and the creative industries.We are also reforming technical education to put in place a world-class technical option that provides preparation for highly skilled employment. A new prestigious and high quality technical option for 16 year olds will prepare individuals for employment in occupations which require the acquisition of both a substantial body of technical knowledge and a set of practical skills valued by industry. Critical to increasing the take-up of STEM subjects is the quality of teaching so we have announced £67 million for the next 5 years to recruit and train an extra 2,500 maths and physics teachers and upskill 15,000 existing maths and physics teachers.Higher Apprenticeships and Degree Apprenticeships are helping bring on the technical skills that manufacturers need, and we have seen a 43.6 increase in apprenticeship starts in the Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies sector subject area since 2010/11.University technical colleges (UTCs) have been established to address skills gaps in local and national industries, providing a technical education to meet the needs of modern businesses. There are currently 48 UTCs open and a further 7 UTCs are in development which plan to open in 2017 and beyond.

Overseas Students

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of falling international student numbers on the financial sustainability of the UK university sector.

Joseph Johnson: The Higher Education Council for Funding in England (HEFCE) reports that the higher education sector was in sound financial health in 2014/15. In the same academic year, overseas fee income accounted for nearly 13% of total sector income on average.International students make an important economic and cultural contribution to the UK. The UK has, and will continue to have, a world class education system that attracts students from across the world.The latest report, entitled ‘Financial Health of the higher education sector: 2015-16 to 2018-19 forecasts’ can be found on HEFCE’s website at:http://www.hefce.ac.uk/media/HEFCE,2014/Content/Pubs/2016/201634/HEFCE2016_34.pdf

Apprentices: Digital Technology

Hannah Bardell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding will be available through the digital apprenticeship service in (a) 2017-18, (b) 2018-19 and (c) 2019-20.

Robert Halfon: The apprenticeship levy will raise £2.8 billion a year across the UK by 2020Through the levy, we will be investing £2.5 billion a year in England on apprenticeships by 2020The table below provides the latest provisional figures for apprenticeships budgets (excluding non-participation budgets, Apprenticeship Grant for Employers (AGE) and Employer Ownership Pilot (EOP). 2017-182018-192019-20Department for Education, £m2,0102,2312,450Funds will be available to levy payers through the digital apprenticeship service depending on their levy payment and their workforce who are resident in England.Funding for the devolved administrations has also been announced: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-agrees-apprenticeship-levy-funding-deal-with-devolved-administrations

Apprentices

Hannah Bardell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much is planned to be spent on apprenticeships in (a) 2017-18, (b) 2018-19 and (c) 2019-20.

Robert Halfon: The apprenticeship levy will raise £2.8 billion a year across the UK by 2020Through the levy, we will be investing £2.5 billion a year in England on apprenticeships by 2020The table below provides the latest provisional figures for apprenticeships budgets (excluding non-participation budgets, Apprenticeship Grant for Employers (AGE) and Employer Ownership Pilot (EOP). 2017-182018-192019-20Department for Education: £m2,0102,2312,450Funds will be available to levy payers through the digital apprenticeship service depending on their levy payment and their workforce who are resident in England.Funding for the devolved administrations has also been announced: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-agrees-apprenticeship-levy-funding-deal-with-devolved-administrations

Children's Centres

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the Government plans to publish its consultation on the future of children's centres.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with Ofsted on inspections of children's centres.

Caroline Dinenage: The Prime Minister has been clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government. We are considering the future direction for children’s centres and will provide further detail in due course, including how stakeholders and members of the public can contribute. The requirement for Ofsted to undertake the inspections of Sure Start children’s centres is currently suspended pending the consideration of their future direction as mentioned above. The Secretary of State has not had any recent discussions with Ofsted on the inspection of children’s centres.

Pre-school Education: Males

Karl McCartney: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of early years' practitioners are male.

Caroline Dinenage: The most recent data held by the Department shows that from 2008 – 2013, the proportion of male staff in the early years workforce has consistently remained at 2% (Childcare Provider Survey, 2013). The Department will be publishing a workforce strategy in 2017, which will seek to remove the barriers to attracting, retaining and developing staff.

Pupil Premium

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to early-years foundation stage profile results, what number and proportion of children in receipt of the early-years pupil premium achieved (a) a good level of development and (b) at least the expected level across all early-learning goals.

Caroline Dinenage: On 20 October, the department published the early years foundation stage profile (EYFSP) results for the 2015 to 2016 academic year, at national and local authority level. The EYFSP results are available at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/early-years-foundation-stage-profile-results-2015-to-2016. The data to determine the number and proportion of children in receipt of the early years pupil premium who achieve a good level of development and at least the expected level across all early learning goals are not readily available, and could only be compiled at disproportionate cost.

Academies: Closures

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answers of 8 December 2016 to Questions 55854 and 55853, on academy closures, for what reasons there is a difference between the number of academies that have been completely closed in those Answers.

Edward Timpson: The answer in question 55853 quoted a complete closure of 14 secondary academies. PQ55854 quoted 2 closures. The difference is a result of one answer more tightly interpreting the definition of academies. The figures in PQ55853 include free schools, studio schools and UTCs, whereas PQ55854 excludes these school types.There have been 2 complete closures of academy secondary schools, 2 free schools, 7 studio schools and 3 UTCs.

Children's Centres: Inspections

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Education's letter to HM Chief Inspector of Education of 25 September 2015, on Ofsted Inspection of Sure Start Children's Centres, what steps she is taking to reinstate the inspection framework for Sure Start children's centres.

Caroline Dinenage: The Prime Minister has been clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government. We are considering the future direction for children’s centres and will provide further detail in due course, including how stakeholders and members of the public can contribute. The requirement for Ofsted to undertake the inspections of Sure Start children’s centres is currently suspended pending consideration of their future direction as mentioned above. As indicated in the letter of 25 September 2015 to HM Chief Inspector of Education[1], the Secretary of State retains the ability to require Ofsted to undertake inspections under section 98A (1)(b) of the Childcare Act 2006, and that Ofsted itself retains the ability to inspect children’s centres under section 98A (2). We do not want this to affect the normal activity of children’s centres and expect them to continue their work to improve the outcomes for children and families in local areas, including their work on self-evaluation, monitoring and the collection of data. Those children’s centres that also deliver early years provision will continue to be inspected for that provision as part of the Common Inspection Framework. [1] This letter can be viewed at: www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/466149/Sam_Gyimah_letter_Ofsted_Inspection_of_Sure_Start_Children_s_Centres.pdf

Schools: Mental Health Services

Nicky Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evaluation her Department has made of the Mental Health Services and Schools Link pilots; and what plans her Department has for those pilots to be extended.

Nicky Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evaluation her Department has made of the Mental Health Services and Schools Link Pilots; and what plans she has to extend those pilots.

Edward Timpson: The pilot of joint training for nominated single points of contact in schools and mental health services is being independently evaluated. The evaluation findings will be available in spring 2017 and will provide an assessment of the effectiveness of the pilot design and implementation, including its sustainability and potential for wider rollout. The evaluation is also looking at the extent to which the pilot resulted in delivery improvements, including in joint working practices between, and the timeliness and appropriateness of referrals from, schools to specialist mental health services; as well as any wider cultural and systems improvements. We have already shared some of the emerging practice from the pilot through national events, to inform local planning. We will use the formal evaluation findings to determine whether there is value in further roll out of specific training or models of single point of contact, and whether further testing is required of any aspects.

Health Professions: Training

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 13 December 2016 to Question 56452, when she plans to lay a statutory instrument providing that standard student support regulations enable healthcare students to apply for loans; and whether that statutory instruments affirmative will be made by the negative or resolution procedure.

Joseph Johnson: The Government expects to lay Regulations implementing changes to student support for undergraduates in 2017/18 early in the New Year. The Regulations will be subject to the negative resolution procedure which is set out in statute.

Academies: Finance

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55974, on academies: finance, for what reason her Department is not aware of other judgments.

Edward Timpson: The Department may become aware of financial irregularities in an academy trust through the Education Funding Agency’s annual programme of assurance work or from allegations it receives. We review these, follow up on a case by case basis and maintain a record of verdicts or judgments made by a court. As stated in the answer to Question 55974, we know of one case where a court has found a head teacher or board member guilty of (responsible for) financial irregularity at an academy trust.

Universities: Sexual Harassment

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has discussed the levels of sexual harassment occurring on university campuses with the (a) Home Secretary and (b) Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Vulnerability, Safeguarding and Countering Extremism.

Joseph Johnson: This Government takes very seriously all forms of harassment wherever it takes place, including in higher education. The Secretary of State for Education has regular discussions with the Home Secretary on all matters where we have a joint interest.

Universities: Sexual Harassment

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department holds any information on the levels of sexual harassment occurring on university campuses.

Joseph Johnson: In November 2015, Universities UK was asked by Government to set up a sexual violence and harassment taskforce. The Taskforce reported its findings in October 2016 in the report ‘Changing the Culture’, which can be found on their website at: http://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2016/changing-the-culture.pdf.The Taskforce’s report draws on the available data and evidence to make a series of recommendations on preventing and responding to sexual harassment. The Taskforce report establishes there is no single source of data on the levels of sexual harassment on University campuses. The Taskforce plans to establish more baseline evidence on this issue and report later this year.

Universities: Sexual Harassment

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has a policy on tackling sexual harassment in universities.

Joseph Johnson: This Government takes any form of violence and sexual harassment in universities, as elsewhere, extremely seriously. Higher education providers are autonomous and independent from Government. In November 2015, Universities UK (UUK) was asked by Government to set up a sexual violence and harassment taskforce. The UUK Taskforce reported its findings in October 2016 in the report ‘Changing the Culture’, which can be found on their website at: http://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2016/changing-the-culture.pdf. This sets out that Universities should embed a zero–tolerance approach to harassment and hate crime. The Taskforce made a series of recommendations to universities on preventing and responding to sexual harassment, sexual violence and hate crime in universities. UUK plan to establish more baseline evidence and to assess institutions’ ‘progress’ in implementing the recommendations, and will report later this year.

Academies: West Midlands

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55853, how many academies have been closed by the Secretary of State since (a) 2010 and (b) 2015 in (i) Birmingham and (ii) the West Midlands.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55853, what the cost was of the complete closure of the 14 academies since 2010.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55853, what assessment her Department has made of the reasons why the West Midlands has a high level of school closures and openings in comparison with other regions.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 55853, for what reasons her Department does not record centrally the costs of school closures.

Edward Timpson: Since 2010, nine academies have closed in the West Midlands. Of the nine academies that have closed, six were amalgamated with other schools. There have been no academy closures in Birmingham since 2010.   AcademiesFree SchoolsStudio SchoolsUniversal technology colleges201020112012 1  20132014  1 20152  120163 1  Source: Edubase 21/12/2016 http://www.education.gov.uk/edubase/home.xhtmlThe Department does not record, centrally, information on the costs of school closures.The Department has not made an assessment of the number of schools that have closed and opened in the West Midlands, as compared with other regions; but the majority of academies that have closed since 2010 were merged with other schools rather than closed outright, which indicates this is likely to be for local organisational reasons.We consider a number of factors, including the financial implications whenever a school closure is proposed. Each such proposed closure arises from a unique set of circumstances. The Department does not, therefore, believe it would provide value for money for the taxpayer to collate information on the cost of all school closures.

Prime Minister

European Council

Catherine West: To ask the Prime Minister, whether she had any individual meetings with (a) leaders and (b) officials from other EU member states during her visit to Brussels for the European Council meeting in December.

Mrs Theresa May: As is normal for a European Council, I had meetings and conversations with a number of European leaders in the course of the December Council in Brussels.In particular, I had bilateral meetings with Dalia Grybauskaite, the President of Lithuania, Maris Kucinskis, the Prime Minister of Latvia and with Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament and Guy Verhofstadt MEP.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Television: Licensing

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what legal powers TV Licensing have to compel an occupier who does not have television receiving equipment to notify TV Licensing that no television licence is required.

Matt Hancock: There are no legal powers to compel an occupier to notify TV licensing that no TV licence is required. All TV Licensing letters ask people who don’t need a licence to get in touch in order to update their records.

Television: Licensing

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has received any representations about the tone of letters sent by TV Licensing to occupiers who do not have television receiving equipment but who choose not to notify TV Licensing of that fact.

Matt Hancock: We have received one representation about the tone of letters sent by TV Licensing to an occupier who did ​not have television receiving equipment but who chose not to notify TV Licensing of that fact.

Broadband

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing social tariffs to improve access to broadband among low-income households.

Matt Hancock: We will consider this in light of Ofcom’s analysis on this issue which was included in the broadband Universal Service Obligation report published on 16 December.

Broadband

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will undertake a further review of the adequacy of a 10 Mbit/s broadband speed before deciding on the level at which such a speed should be set in a Universal Service Obligation.

Matt Hancock: We will carefully consider Ofcom’s broadband USO analysis, published on 16 December, before reaching any decision on the design of the broadband USO, including the minimum speed and any other quality criteria that might apply.

Social Networking: EU Law

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to review the adequacy of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 in so far as they relate to social media platforms after the UK leaves the EU.

Matt Hancock: A decision will be made in due course.

Arts: Self-employed

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2016 to Question 56474, if she will provide the answer sought in that Question on what discussions she has had with Ministers of HM Treasury on the potential effect on freelance creative workers of HM Revenue and Customs proposals that self-employed workers update their tax quarterly; and what steps she plans to take to address the concerns of those workers.

Matt Hancock: The Government's formal response will be published shortly.

Mobile Phones: Radio Frequencies

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential effect of a 30 per cent cap on mobile spectrum on (a) competition and (b) prices for consumers.

Matt Hancock: This is a matter for Ofcom. DCMS has noted Ofcom's competition and consumer assessment, as set out in its successive consultations on the forthcoming auction of 2.3 and 3.4 GHz spectrum.

Social Networking: Harassment

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 October 2016 to Question 48756, what steps the Government plans to take to ensure that its expectations for social media providers to have robust processes in place to deal with abusive content are met.

Matt Hancock: Government continues to engage intensively with industry, including major social media companies, and charities through the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) a multi-stakeholder forum representing over 200 organisations with an interest in internet safety. UKCCIS has published a guide for providers of social media and interactive services to help make their platforms safer for children and young people under 18. UKCCIS is working to ensure this guide influences policy and practice by online service providers both within and outside the UK. Government expects industry to review and improve its child internet safety provisions as technology changes. Leading providers report on their online safety practices voluntarily as part of the safety framework of the ICT Coalition for Children Online: http://ictcoalition.org/

Public Libraries

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the timetable is for the release of data collected by the Libraries Taskforce in relation to statutory and non-statutory public libraries; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Rob Wilson: The data collected by the Libraries Taskforce in relation to statutory and non-statutory public libraries will be published in due course.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much her Department and its arm's-length departmental bodies has spent on (a) staffing, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure in the current financial year in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Matt Hancock: Information on the total amount of current and capital expenditure on services by organisation in Yorkshire and the Humber is publically available on gov.uk as part of the Country and Regional Analysis statistical release. This analysis provides a breakdown of government expenditure on services by country/region and covers 2011-12 through to 2015-16. It can be found at the following web link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016

Mobile Phones: Radio Frequencies

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effect of UK's distribution of spectrum on competition in the mobile industry.

Matt Hancock: This assessment forms part of Ofcom's competition assessment, which can be found here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0026/93545/award-of-the-spectrum-bands-consultation.pdf

Mobile Phones: Radio Frequencies

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to ensure that mobile networks use all of the spectrum holdings available.

Matt Hancock: Efficient use of spectrum is both the Government's aim and a statutory objective for Ofcom in carrying out its spectrum duties. Long term non- or under- use of assigned spectrum by a licensee could be inefficient, depending on the likely alternative use.

Mobile Phones: Scotland

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential benefits to Scotland of increasing the equality of spectrum holdings among mobile networks.

Matt Hancock: Ofcom have addresses the subject here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0026/93545/award-of-the-spectrum-bands-consultation.pdf

Mobile Phones: Radio Frequencies

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that the UK's distribution of spectrum ensures (a) coverage and (b) competition across the UK.

Matt Hancock: We are funding the clearance of 700 MHz spectrum for additional coverage from around 2020 and we have negotiated new coverage obligations in spectrum licences which will further extend mobile coverage in 2017.

Department for Work and Pensions

Children: Poverty

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the implications are for his Department's policies of the Institute of Fiscal Studies assessment that the Government lacks a clear and effective child poverty strategy.

Damian Hinds: The Prime Minister is clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government. We intend to bring forward a Green Paper on social justice, which will identify and address the root causes of poverty, building upon the two statutory indicators set out in the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016.

Pension Credit

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has to abolish the Savings Credit element of Pension Credit.

Richard Harrington: There are no plans to abolish the Savings Credit element of Pension Credit. It remains available to those whose State Pension age was on or before 5 April 2016, and who are aged 65 or over.

Food Poverty

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has been made of recent trends in the level of food poverty in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Damian Hinds: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to review the 10-year rule with respect to the prescription for osteoarthritis of the knee in former miners; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt: There are no current plans to review the ’10 year rule’ with respect to the prescription for osteoarthritis of the knee for specific mining occupations.I am advised on matters relating to the Industrial Injuries Scheme by the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC). IIAC keeps all occupational diseases under continuous review, including osteoarthritis of the knee, and is always ready to receive and consider robust scientific evidence from any source.

Social Security Benefits

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of how many (a) parents and (b) lone parents with a youngest child aged three (i) nationally, (ii) by region, (iii) by local authority and (iv) by parliamentary constituency will be expected to look for work if they want to claim universal credit or tax credits from April 2017.

Damian Hinds: The information requested is not available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Pension Protection Fund

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many representations he has received on the effect of the Pension Protection Fund Levy on retail co-operatives; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington: The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) is an independent body which pays compensation to members of defined benefit occupational pension schemes where the sponsoring employer becomes insolvent and the scheme is unable to cover the accrued pension liabilities. The PPF is funded from a combination of the transferred scheme funds, recoveries from the insolvent employer, investment return and a levy on eligible schemes. Under the Pensions Act 2004, the levy is set by the PPF independently of the Government.I have received one letter regarding the impact of the Pension Protection Fund levy on retail co-operatives, which I referred to the PPF for a reply.

Department for Work and Pensions: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department and any of its arms-length departmental bodies have spent on (a) staffing, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure in the current fiscal year in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Caroline Nokes: The information is not available.

Jobcentres: Glasgow

Natalie McGarry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Government has conducted an Equality Impact Assessment to evaluate the effect that the closure of Jobcentre Plus offices will have in Glasgow.

Damian Hinds: We will be undertaking an equality analysis as part of the detailed planning for service reconfiguration. This will include feedback from public consultation in those locations where this applies.

Occupational Pensions

Nigel Mills: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.

Richard Harrington: Automatic enrolment will give around 11 million people the opportunity to save into a workplace pension. We expect around 10 million people to be newly saving or saving more by 2018. Figures released on 13 December by the Pensions Regulator show that over 7 million people have now been automatically enrolled by more than 341,000 employers.

Occupational Pensions

Matt Warman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.

Richard Harrington: Automatic enrolment will give around 11 million people the opportunity to save into a workplace pension. We expect around 10 million people to be newly saving or saving more by 2018. Figures released on 13 December by the Pensions Regulator show that over 7 million people have now been automatically enrolled by more than 341,000 employers.

Employment: Females

Ben Howlett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the recent trends in the number of women in employment.

Damian Hinds: The number of women in employment has increased by 229,000 over the past year. The female employment rate, at 69.8%, is at a record high.

Housing Benefit: Young People

Callum McCaig: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of his Department's policy to remove housing benefit from 18 to 21 year olds on their living standards.

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of his Department's policy to remove housing benefit from 18 to 21 year olds on their living standards.

Caroline Nokes: This policy will ensure young people in the benefit system face the same choices as young people who are in work but may not be able to afford to leave home.By encouraging young people to stay in the family home, this policy will improve work incentives and, under the Youth Obligation, more young adults will move into work, improving their living standards.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on improving pension transition arrangements for women born in the 1950s.

Richard Harrington: The Government has been clear that the introduction of further transitional arrangements cannot be justified, given the imperative to focus public resources on helping those who are most in need. There are no plans to go beyond the £1.1 billion concession introduced when Parliament considered the changes.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Members: Correspondence

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to respond to the letter to her Department from the hon. Member for Wolverhampton South West of 26 October 2016 on the transportation of live animals.

George Eustice: We received the letter to which the hon. Member for Wolverhampton South West refers on 22 December, and you can expect a reply imminently.

Environment Protection

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on the roll-out of Greening Government Commitments for 2016-2020; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: On 14 December this year, Defra published new Greening Government Commitments for the period 2016 to 2020. This action builds on the previous set of commitments, so implementation is essentially already underway. Considerable progress has already been made. Between 2009-10 and 2014-15, the UK Government as a whole reduced its greenhouse gas emissions and waste by 22% each and its water consumption by 11%. The reporting framework was rolled forward during 2015-16 to enable further progress on the previous targets and to allow time to develop the new commitments. An annual report for 2015-16 is currently being prepared and we will continue to report on progress during the period covered by the new commitments.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will assess the merits of introducing a deposit return system for plastic bottles.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend, the Member for St Ives, Derek Thomas, on 22 December 2016, PQ 57651.

Cats: Sales

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 December 2016 to Question 56069, what plans the Government has to remove the exemption from licensing requirements of people repeatedly selling kittens bred from their non-pedigree pet cat, currently in place under the provisions of the Pet Animals Act 1951, within new regulations governing the sale of pet animals made under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

George Eustice: As part of the review of animal establishment licensing schemes, the Government is proposing to remove the licence exemptions in the Pet Animals Act 1951. These exemptions are for those in the business of selling either pedigree animals that have been bred by them or the offspring of an animal that has been kept by them as a pet, for instance, the offspring of their non-pedigree pet cat. We will be publishing our ‘Next Steps’ document on the proposals shortly.

Heathrow Airport: Air Pollution

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the effect of the proposed third runway at Heathrow Airport on air quality; and what steps her Department is taking to incorporate its assessment of the air quality effect of a third runway in its revised air quality plan.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Ministerial colleagues on a range of issues, including on air quality.Our air quality plans have always followed the best available evidence. We are currently working on the next steps needed to revise the national air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide. We will set out further measures in 2017.

Food: Waste Disposal

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what advice she has received from the Chief Scientific Adviser to her Department on the cost and associated benefits of introducing separate food waste collections in England.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Waste and Resources Action Programme has published guidance on household food waste collections, which includes advice on the costs and associated benefits of introducing separate food waste collections in England. This guidance is available at: http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/household-food-waste-collections-guide. I have not asked the Chief Scientific Adviser to provide additional advice on this matter.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what metrics for success her Department has set for the framework for consistency in household waste collections, launched by WRAP in September 2016.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra has not set specific metrics for this industry-led voluntary initiative to improve the quantity and quality of household recycling. The Waste and Resources Action Programme and other members of the industry advisory group for consistency have set out a number of actions and objectives to achieve the vision set out in the Framework and Defra officials will work with them to monitor progress against these actions.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Languages

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much his Department spent on programmes which promote the use of the (a) Cornish and (b) English language in each year since 2008-09.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department’s spend is set out below.   2008/09  (£000s)2009/10 (£000s)2010/11(£000s)2011/12(£000s)2012/13 (£000s)2013/14 (£000s)2014/15 (£000s)2015/16 (£000s)Total  (£000s) Cornish Language1501501501401401001201501,100DCLG funding for ESOL0003,9864,1442,1363,6582,52816,452 In addition, the Government spent over £100 million in 2014-15 on English for Speakers of Other Languages training.

Voluntary Work: Religion

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which applications were approved under the Together in Service programme to support multi-faith volunteering; what evaluation has been made of the effectiveness of that programme; and what plans the Government has for another Together in Service programme to support multi-faith volunteering.

Mr Marcus Jones: Details of each of the social action projects awarded funding through Together in Service scheme can be found here:http://www.faithaction.net/work/together-in-service/Faith Action, the body contracted to run Together in Service, commissioned a full external assessment of the programme, which was completed in July 2015.My Department continues to fund programmes which support local faith communities, and others, to undertake social action, including Near Neighbours, Mitzvah Day and Creating the Common Good.

Hate Crime

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the evidence from his Department to the Home Affairs Select Committee, on hate crime and its violent consequences, where the £60 million funding for communities to come together has been spent by region.

Mr Marcus Jones: We have spent over £60 million under the integration programme since 2010/11 to support projects that help create the conditions for people to live successfully alongside each other. Since April 2014, we have funded over 30 projects which reached over 644,000 people, providing 14,997 volunteering opportunities and hosting more than 17,900 events, groups and classes. We do not hold figures on the allocation of funding by region.

Hate Crime

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 9 of the evidence submitted by his Department to the Home Affairs Select Committee Inquiry on hate crime and its violent consequences, what training he plans to provide to editors and journalists; and when such training will be implemented.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Non-domestic Rates: Financial Services

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that proposed increases in business rates do not have a negative effect on the financial services sector.

Mr Marcus Jones: Business rates are based on valuations from the Valuation Office Agency and we do not intervene in their independent assessments. We have put in place a £3.6 billion transitional relief scheme for England to support ratepayers at the 2017 revaluation.

Communities and Local Government: Equality

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, who the diversity champion is on his departmental board.

Mr Marcus Jones: Christine Hewitt, Director, People, Capability and Change is the Board Diversity Champion in the Department for Communities and Local Government. We also have senior Diversity Champions for BAME, Race, Disability, Women, LGBT and Social Mobility as well as our Departmental Diversity Champion who work closely with our Networks in embedding Diversity and Inclusion messages and in promoting opportunities. Our Permanent Secretary is the Gender Champion for the Civil Service and all of our Champions and Networks are aligned with Civil Service governance, Networks and wider communities.The Government takes its commitments to Diversity and Inclusion very seriously, and as a result the action in the Talent Action Plan 2015 has been completed and is referenced in the 2016 Talent Action Plan “progress to date” section. All departments, including new departments Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) and Department for International Trade (DIT) have nominated overall diversity champions. They are responsible for providing an overall insight for all protected characteristics.

Local Government Finance: Greater Manchester

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the potential effect on the budget of each local authority in Greater Manchester of the (a) reduction in the New Homes Bonus scheme and (b) additional funding through the adult social care support grant in each of the next three years.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government has published Core Spending Power tables measuring the core revenue funding available for local authority services in each year of this Parliament, available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/core-spending-power-provisional-local-government-finance-settlement-2017-to-2018

Compulsory Purchase: Greater London

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many compulsory purchase orders have been made, by London borough, (a) in total, (b) for heritage purposes and (c) to provide housing in each year since 1990.

Gavin Barwell: The Department does not hold the specific information requested, compulsory purchase order data only exists from 2011 to present day. However, to obtain this information would involve interrogating individual case records, at disproportionate cost. We do not hold information on compulsory purchase orders for heritage purposes which are the responsibility of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Compulsory Purchase

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities have made compulsory purchase orders in each year since 1990.

Gavin Barwell: The Department does not hold the specific information requested, compulsory purchase orders data only exists from 2011 to present day. However, to obtain this information would involve interrogating individual case records, at disproportionate cost.

Offices: Greater London

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect on the amount of office floor space in London of the relaxation of permitted development rights.

Gavin Barwell: From April 2016 applications for prior approval are required to note how many homes will be permitted. There is no requirement to note how much office space is to change to residential use. The net additional dwellings data shows that the right has made a valuable contribution to housing supply, delivering over 12,800 homes in the year to March 2016.

Social Services: Council Tax

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his oral contribution of 15 December 2016, Official Report, columns 976 to 979, on the local government finance settlement, whether the decision by a local authority to raise revenue through the adult social care precept was a criterion used by his Department in assessing the allocation of adult social care support grant awards.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Adult Social Care Support Grant is a one-off grant to councils in recognition of the particular pressures on adult social care services in 2017-18, and will be allocated to councils based on relative need using the Department of Health's social care Relative Needs Formula.

Communities and Local Government: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the value of (a) staffing expenditure, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure by his Department and its arms-length bodies in whole or in part in Yorkshire and the Humber in 2016-17.

Mr Marcus Jones: Information on the total amount of current and capital expenditure on services by organisation in Yorkshire and the Humber is publically available on gov.uk as part of the Country and Regional Analysis statistical release. This information covers 2011-12 through to 2015-16 and can be found at the following web link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016

Council Tax: Salford

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much additional revenue he estimates Salford City Council could receive as a result of increasing council tax rates by three per cent in the 2017-18 financial year.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Council Tax: Salford

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much additional revenue he estimates Salford City Council could receive by increasing council tax rates by three per cent in the 2016-17 financial year.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Social Services: Finance

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his oral contribution of 15 December 2016, Official Report, columns 976-9, on the local government finance settlement, what methodology his Department plans to use to determine relative need when awarding the adult social care support grant in 2017-18.

Mr Marcus Jones: The 2017-18 Adult Social Care Support Grant that was announced alongside the provisional local government finance settlement and will be allocated according to the Adult Social Care Relative Needs Formula.The distribution of this grant for each council with adult social care responsibilities is set out in the Core Spending Power supporting tables published as part of the department's announcement of the provisional local government finance settlement. These tables are available on the department's website and can be accessed via the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/577770/Core_Spending_Power_Supporting_Information.xlsx

Local Government Finance: Salford

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the provisional local government finance settlement 2017 to 2018, by how much Salford City Council's new homes bonus payments will be reduced; how much Salford City Council will receive from the adult social care support grant; and what the net effect is of those funding changes.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government has published Core Spending Power tables measuring the core revenue funding available for local authority services in each year of this Parliament, available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/core-spending-power-provisional-local-government-finance-settlement-2017-to-2018

Starter Home Initiative: Peterborough

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to increase the provision of starter homes in Peterborough; and if he will make a statement.

Gavin Barwell: We are committed to building starter homes with a minimum 20% discount on open market value for young first time buyers to help them into home ownership. We have made strong progress on delivery, through the Housing and Planning Act, planning reforms, and the Homes and Communities Agency has been engaging proactively with local authorities across the country to identify opportunities for early starter home delivery. We will set out our future plans for starter homes in the forthcoming Housing White Paper. We expect the first starter homes to start being built in 2017.

Infrastructure

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the report of the review group on Community Infrastructure published in November 2015; and if he will make a statement.

Gavin Barwell: The Government commissioned a review of the Community Infrastructure Levy in November 2015, which was undertaken by an independent panel who were specifically asked to look at the extent to which the levy provides an effective mechanism for funding infrastructure, and to recommend changes that will improve its operation in support of the Government’s wider housing and growth objectives.The review group submitted their report to Ministers in October 2016. The Government is currently reviewing the recommendations and will respond in the forthcoming Housing White Paper.

Local Government: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much local authorities in Yorkshire and the Humber have spent in the current financial year.

Mr Marcus Jones: Information on local authority in-year revenue expenditure is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/575097/QRO2_1617_Report_Tables.xlsxInformation on local authority in-year capital expenditure is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/571619/Capital_Payments_and_Receipts_2006-07_to_Q1_2016-17_England.xlsx

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he plans further to devolve (a) community infrastructure levy funding, (b) 100 per cent business rate growth and (c) EU legacy structural funds to the new Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority after May 2017; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Percy: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Social Services: Finance

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to fund social care through new homes bonuses; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: Local authorities choose how much to spend on social care in their area, drawing on income from local taxes and national grants. On 15 December, we announced that we will provide an additional £240 million to fund adult social care through the Adult Social Care Support Grant in 2017-18, funded by reforms to the New Homes Bonus. This funding will be used to support immediate pressures being experienced by authorities delivering adult social care and will be distributed as a one off grant allocated according to the adult social care Relative Needs Formula. This is in addition to measures to direct funding to social care announced at the 2015 Spending Review, including the improved Better Care Fund grant, which were partly funded from reforms to the New Homes Bonus.

Empty Property

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the use of vacant building credit in delivering new residential homes; and if he will make a statement.

Gavin Barwell: This Government continues to seek prioritisation of brownfield land for development. The Vacant Building Credit policy applies to section 106 affordable housing contributions and was introduced to incentivise brownfield development including the reuse or redevelopment of empty and redundant buildings. A similar provision applies in respect of the Community Infrastructure Levy.The Government commissioned a review of the levy in November 2015, which covered a wide range of issues including the relationship between the levy and section 106.The review group submitted their report in October. The Government is currently reviewing the recommendations and further announcements will be made in due course.

Regeneration: Heysham

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what applications have been submitted to Lancashire County Council on regeneration in South Heysham.

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what applications have been submitted to Lancashire County Council to regenerate land in (a) Morecambe and Lunesdale and (b) Lancaster and Fleetwood constituency.

Andrew Percy: The Department is not aware of any such applications but this question should be addressed to Lancashire County Council.

Ministry of Defence

Ministry of Defence: Equality

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, who the diversity champion is on his departmental board.

Mark Lancaster: The Permanent Secretary, Stephen Lovegrove, is the Ministry of Defence's Diversity and Inclusion champion, and acts as an advocate for diversity and inclusion issues on the Defence Board.

Yemen: Cluster Munitions

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he was first made aware of the results of the internal investigation that found recent use of UK cluster munitions in Yemen.

Sir Michael Fallon: When the Saudi-led coalition concluded its investigations.

Yemen: Cluster Munitions

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he discussed with his Saudi counterpart its recent use of cluster munitions in Yemen in the last six months; and what the outcome of each of those discussions was.

Sir Michael Fallon: I regularly discuss a range of defence and security issues with my Saudi counterparts, including the use of cluster munitions.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft: Scandinavia

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether F35 Joint Strike Fighters from (a) the Netherlands, (b) Denmark and (c) Norway will be able to operate from UK airfields to conduct exercises.

Mike Penning: Yes.

Iraq Historic Allegations Team

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average time taken to resolve a case by the Iraq Historic Allegations Team is.

Mike Penning: Given the unprecedented number and complexity of the Iraq investigations, it would be disproportionately costly to analyse the time taken to resolve allegations. On current plans, IHAT will have completed its work by the end of 2019, having dealt with over 3,300 allegations received since it was set up in November 2010. The IHAT has made significant progress and has already disposed of 70% of these allegations.

Burma: Armed Forces

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse has been of training provided to the Burmese army.

Mike Penning: The Ministry of Defence does not provide any form of combat training to the Burmese military.We do provide educational training to the Burmese military in the form of programmes delivered by the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom on the role of the military in a democracy, leadership and English language training. The cost to the public purse of this training provided to the Burmese Army, as at 21 December 2016, is £236,668. Our programme of engagement with the Burmese military remains under continual review.

HM Treasury

Treasury: Staff

Louise Haigh: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with which stakeholders he has discussed the representation of employees on company boards since 13 July 2016.

Mr David Gauke: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel

Public Finance

Chris Leslie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to publish an estimate of the potential effect on the public finances of the UK's decision to leave the EU; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Gauke: The Government continues to undertake a range of analyses to inform the UK’s position for the upcoming EU exit negotiations. We are seeking the best possible arrangement for the United Kingdom and the work being conducted reflects this.

Apprentices: Taxation

Callum McCaig: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the revenue to be raised from the Apprenticeship Levy in (a) 2017-18, (b) 2018-19 and (c) 2019-20.

Jane Ellison: The expected yield for the apprenticeship levy is published in table C.5: ‘Current Receipts’, in the Autumn Statement 2016 document available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/571559/autumn_statement_2016_web.pdf

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

Richard Burden: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 2 November 2016 to Question 13949, if he will publish the Government's analysis on determining any loss of VED revenues following VW Group's use of defeat devices; and whether any of the models among the 1.2 million vehicles affected were subsequently re-banded.

Jane Ellison: The Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) liability for any particular vehicle is set in accordance with its certificate of conformity at the time of first registration, and consequently consumers are paying VED correctly. Any revisions to the software used in the affected models are being assessed by the relevant European approval authorities. This comprises a series of checks, including that the CO2 emissions remain the same or better.

UK Trade with EU

Barry Gardiner: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Government has made of the potential cost to British exporters of increased red tape in the event of the UK leaving the EU customs union related to (a) quota requirements, (b) rules of origin, (c) inspection certifications, (d) advance cargo declarations and (f) customs checks.

Jane Ellison: The Government is committed to ensuring that Britain remains one of the best countries in the world to do business and is engaging with businesses to understand the possible impacts on exporters and importers of leaving the Customs Union.

Provident Societies: Audit

Gareth Thomas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will reform the audit requirements for industrial and provident societies in line with similar requirements for companies; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Kirby: As part of its ongoing policy development, HM Treasury is considering the audit requirement for co-operative societies (Industrial and Provident Societies renamed to Co-operatives in 2014), before deciding if any changes are necessary.

Treasury: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department permits its employees to join a credit union through payroll deductions; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Kirby: HM Treasury employees are freely able to join a credit union, and work is currently being done to assess the feasibility of supporting this via payroll deductions

Insurance Premium Tax

Danny Kinahan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the effect on the household income of UK citizens of increasing insurance premium tax from 10 to 12 per cent.

Jane Ellison: Insurance Premium Tax is a tax on all general insurance. It is paid by insurers and it is up to insurers to decide whether to pass on any tax paid. If insurers choose to pass on the full cost of the rate rise this would increase the average household’s spending on insurance by £18 per year. This is calculated using data from the Office for National Statistics. This takes into account the fact that only a third of households have two cars and only 11% of the population have medical insurance.

Minimum Wage: Prosecutions

Alison Thewliss: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many employers were prosecuted in 2009-10 and 2010-11 for failing to pay the National Minimum Wage.

Jane Ellison: The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW or NLW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reviews all complaints that are referred to it. There were no prosecutions in 2009/10 and one in 2010/11. There have been 13 successful prosecutions for NMW offences since 2007, with 4 of these in the 2016 calendar year. However, prosecutions are not necessarily the best approach to ensuring that workers benefit from enforcement activities as criminal sanctions against companies usually mean that their workers end up waiting longer for their lost earnings to be paid back.

Secured Energy Bonds

Kerry McCarthy: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations his Department has received on the change in the value of secured energy bonds that were offered by CDB Energy; and what steps he is taking to address the implications of that change for investors.

Simon Kirby: HM Treasury has received representations from members of the public and MPs on the change in value of secured energy bonds offered by CDB Energy. The government does not intervene in specific cases under the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA has laid out the avenues available to investors in bonds offered by CDB Energy. This can be found at:www.fca.org.uk/news/news-stories/secured-energy-bonds-plc-%E2%80%93-options-investors

Children: Day Care

Yvonne Fovargue: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans his Department has to publish an updated impact assessment of tax-free childcare to include the changes to eligibility criteria for such childcare announced in the Autumn Statement 2016.

Mr David Gauke: The government is updating the impact assessment for Tax-Free Childcare. This will reflect changes made since the scheme was first announced, including changes to the eligibility criteria made at Autumn Statement 2015. It will be published before the scheme launches early this year.

Treasury: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much his Department and any arms-length departmental body has spent on (a) staffing, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure in the current fiscal year in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Simon Kirby: Information on the total amount of current and capital expenditure on services by organisation in Yorkshire and the Humber is publically available on gov.uk as part of the Country and Regional Analysis statistical release. This information covers 2011-12 through to 2015-16 and can be found at the following web link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016

Minimum Wage

Jack Dromey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people were employed in each HM Revenue and Customs team working on enforcing minimum wage payments in (a) 2016-17 and (b) 2015-16.

Jack Dromey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.48 of the Autumn Statement 2016, on national minimum wage enforcement, what the (a) budget, (b) staffing capacity and (c) start date is of the additional support targeted at small businesses.

Jack Dromey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.48 of the Autumn Statement 2016, on national minimum wage enforcement, what the (a) budget, (b) staffing capacity and (c) start date is of the campaign to raise awareness among workers and employers of their rights and responsibilities.

Jane Ellison: The Government is determined that everyone who is entitled to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) receives it. Anyone who feels they have been underpaid NMW or NLW should contact the Acas helpline on 0300 123 1100. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) reviews all complaints that are referred to it. The Government has more than trebled annual funding of minimum wage enforcement since 2014, providing a total budget of £25.3m in 2017/18. This investment has enabled a significant expansion of resources dedicated to enforcing the minimum wage. There are currently 291 staff in HMRC's NMW teams, up from 237 in 2015/16. Other staff across HMRC contribute to enforcing NMW and NLW, including: lawyers, technical advisers, and those specialising in criminal investigations amongst others. However, HMRC does not record the specific numbers of those staff involved beyond those identified above or break down budget from the overall allocation. Paragraph 3.48 of the Autumn Statement 2016 provided funding from 2017/18 and so start dates for providing additional support for small businesses and the work to increase awareness of NMW rights and responsibilities are yet to be confirmed.

Revenue and Customs

Jack Dromey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) budget and (b) workforce is of each HM Revenue and Customs team responsible for enforcing employment categorisation.

Jack Dromey: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) budget and (b) planned workforce is of HM Revenue and Customs' employment status and intermediaries team.

Jane Ellison: Responsibility for enforcing employment categorisation is shared across a number of teams within HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). The Employment Status and Intermediaries Team handles most of the cases. The budget for the Employment Status and Intermediaries team in 2016-17 is £10.637m, this covers the pay bill and travel & subsistence costs. Other costs are allocated centrally by HMRC and are not split to team level. There is currently the equivalent of 253 full time employees in the team.Some cases are also handled by HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service (FIS), Large Business and National Minimum Wage teams. In these teams it is not possible to isolate either the resource or budget allocated to enforcing employment categorisation as the resource is allocated according to the risk presented in the case. Multi-skilled teams working across all areas of the tax system tackle the largest and most serious cases with appropriate resource depending on the range of risks presented of which employment categorisation may be one.

Public Expenditure

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which areas of protected public expenditure his Department plans to include in the review of public spending priorities and other commitments for the next Parliament announced in paragraph 1.57 of Statement 206.

Mr David Gauke: As set out in paragraph 1.57 of Autumn Statement 16, decisions on public spending commitments in the next Parliament will be determined at the next Spending Review.

District Heating: Non-domestic Rates

Mr Mark Prisk: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that business rates for heat networks are calculated using the receipts and expenditure method of valuation.

Jane Ellison: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has responsibility for setting Rateable Values for business rates and is in discussion with industry representatives about the method of valuation used for heat networks. This includes whether the receipts and expenditure method of valuation would be a more appropriate method and the VOA will consider any evidence put forward by the industry in support of its use.

District Heating

Mr Mark Prisk: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on encouraging the development of heat networks.

Mr David Gauke: In line with the practice of successive administrations details of ministerial discussions are not routinely disclosed.

Children: Day Care

Yvonne Fovargue: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress his Department has made on the roll-out of tax-free childcare; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Gauke: Tax-Free Childcare will be launched early this year. It will be rolled out gradually to parents in a managed and careful way to ensure the introduction of this new scheme is as smooth as possible for parents. All eligible parents will be able to access the scheme by the end of 2017.

Business: Loans

Dan Jarvis: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government has taken to assist people affected by the mis-selling of synthetic fixed-rate loans between 2001 and 2009.

Dan Jarvis: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps have been taken to aid those firms affected by the mis-selling of synthetic fixed-rate loans between 2001 and 2009.

Simon Kirby: The Government has always stated that the mis-selling of financial products is wrong, and it is important that businesses that have been affected should be compensated.  The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is an independent non-governmental body responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry. The FCA does not have general regulatory powers over business lending. As a result, the redress scheme covering the mis-selling of interest rate hedging products (IRHPs) only covers those products that were agreed separately to a business loan. Some banks voluntarily carried out their own reviews on the sale of fixed rate loans with characteristics of IRHPs, and have sought to mirror the IRHP redress scheme process.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Digital Technology

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to publish the Government Transformation Strategy before 1 January 2017.

Ben Gummer: The Government Transformation Strategy will be published in due course.

Low Pay

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK (i) between the ages of 16 and 21 earing less than £8.45 per hour, (ii) aged under 18 earning £4 per hour, (iii) aged 21 and over earning £6.95 per hour, (iv) aged 18 to 20 earning £5.55 per hour and (v) who are apprentices and earing £3.40 per hour.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response to PQ58343
(PDF Document, 80.62 KB)

Suicide: York

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many recorded suicides there have been in York in each of the last five years.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response to PQ58339
(PDF Document, 89.01 KB)

Cabinet Office: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department permits its employees to join a credit union through payroll deductions; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Gummer: I can confirm my department currently does not have the facility to allow staff to join a credit union through payroll deductions. Staff can still however, make arrangements to contribute to a credit union via direct debit.

Immigrants: EU Nationals

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many EU nationals are estimated to be (a) living and (b) working in the UK.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.On leaving the EU our intention is to create an immigration system that allows us to control the numbers of people coming from Europe in the future. But that does not mean closing the door to the brightest and the best and welcoming them to our country.



UKSA Response to Member - EU Nationals
(PDF Document, 115.85 KB)

Written Questions

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2016 to Question 51658, when he expects the UK Statistics Authority to place its additional analysis in the Library.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response to PQ58421
(PDF Document, 80.57 KB)

Department for International Trade

Foreign Investment in UK

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many foreign direct investment projects there have been into the UK in each six-month period in the last three years.

Greg Hands: The Department for International Trade collects and validates information on known foreign direct investment (FDI) projects that materialise in the UK during a financial year. The results are published annually to allow for full quality control of the results, and can be found on Gov.uk.The latest set of FDI results can be found using the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dit-inward-investment-results-for-the-tax-year-2015-to-2016An overview of the last five years worth of FDI into the UK regions can be accessed on:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-direct-investment-projects-by-ukti-regions-201011-to-201415For any FDI and Export related publications, please consult:https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/exports-and-inward-investment

Department of Health

Carers

Natalie McGarry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate he has made of the number of people who provide unpaid care in (a) England, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland by (i) age and (ii) gender.

David Mowat: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 December 2016 to Question 57855.

Health: Children

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to publish in full data from the age 2-2 and a half health and development review as part of the Children and Young People's Health Services Data Set.

Nicola Blackwood: Public Health England will draw on ASQ-3 data from Children and Young People’s Health Services to report the Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) outcome measure of child development at age 2-2½. The first reporting of the outcome measure is planned for inclusion in the PHOF in spring 2017.

Children in Care

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support his Department provides for care leavers after they become 18.

David Mowat: The Government recognises that care leavers have an additional need for support during their transition to adulthood and we are committed to working across Government Departments to support them. That is why the Government published its refreshed care leaver strategy Keep on Caring in July 2016. The Department of Health is one of the eight Government Departments contributing to the strategy, which will deliver the additional support that care leavers need to make a successful transition to adulthood. The Department of Health and Department for Education have also established an Expert Working Group to produce care pathways, quality standards and models of care for looked-after children and care leavers who need emotional and mental health support. We expect the group to report in October 2017.

Department of Health: Official Hospitality

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what official (a) lunches, (b) dinners and (c) receptions he has hosted in each of the last 12 months; and what the (i) location, (ii) total cost to the public purse and (iii) purpose was of each such event.

David Mowat: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Department of Health: Theft

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what items worth more than £100 were stolen from his Department in 2015-16.

David Mowat: The Department records thefts and losses on one database from reports submitted by staff. As these reports do not always distinguish between lost or stolen items the information below may cover both. Using information from this database, the following table gives details of items worth more than £100 that were lost or stolen in the Department in the financial year (FY) 2015-16.  FY 2015-2016ItemNumberBlackberry15iPhone2Laptop2

Defibrillators

Dr Tania Mathias: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many extra publicly accessible defibrillators and associated training programmes have been provided as a result of the £1 million investment announced in Budget 2015.

David Mowat: The £1 million programme, announced in the budget in 2015, to increase the availability and accessibility of public access defibrillators and numbers trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) made 700 more publicly accessible defibrillators in communities across England. A breakdown of awards made is below: PackageAwardsUnitsDefibrillator, CPR kit and cabinet486641Defibrillator and CPR kit1021Cabinet only2938Total525700 In the March 2016 budget, a further £1 million was made available to make public access defibrillators and CPR training more widely available in communities across England. A grant has been made to the British Heart Foundation to disburse the funding and it is currently accepting applications.

Department of Health: Press

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, to which magazines, journals and newspapers his Department subscribes.

David Mowat: The specific titles to which the Department subscribes are listed in the attached file. For the most part only one copy, or electronic access is acquired – where this is not the case the title is listed more than once. We do not subscribe centrally to print newspapers. The Department’s Knowledge Centre is responsible for central provision of library services – including newspapers, periodicals and trade publications. The figures above do not include expenditure on items for retention by individual divisions, responsibility for which was decentralised in April 2010. Details on this expenditure are not available.



PQ58031 list
(Excel SpreadSheet, 16.13 KB)

Mental Capacity

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been spent by each local authority on Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards cases in (a) 2014-15, (b) 2015-16 and (c) 2016-17 to date; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much of the additional £25 million provided by his Department in 2015-16 to support local authorities in their deprivation of liberty safeguards work each local authority received.

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate his Department has made of the financial cost to a local authority of a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards assessment; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards assessments each local authority in England made in (a) 2014-15, (b) 2015-16 and (c) 2016-17 to date; and if he will make a statement.

Nicola Blackwood: The Government does not collect information on local authority expenditure on their role in relation to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The Department published an impact assessment on the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards in 2008. Official statistics on the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards are published annually by NHS Digital. Information on the number of applications to each local authority and the outcome of those applications is available at: - 2014/15 - http://content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB18577/dols-eng-1415-ann-a.xlsx - 2015/16 - http://content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB21814/dols-eng-1516-annx-c.xlsx Data relating to 2016/17 will be published by NHS Digital in autumn 2017. Additional funding was provided to local authorities for their role in relation to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards in 2015 and was allocated using the Relative Needs Formula. The amount provided to each local authority is provided in the attached table.



PQ58437 Gareth Thomas additional table - DoLS fund
(Word Document, 36.09 KB)

Veterans: Disability

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support his Department provides to veterans who have lost one or more limb during their service.

David Mowat: In England veterans are able to access high quality clinically appropriate prosthetic limbs from the National Health Service either through local disablement services, or through one of the nine centres that have been selected to provide enhanced services for veterans. The veterans’ prosthetic panel continues to support these veterans, ensuring they receive the latest specification prosthetics. Health is a devolved issue however if a service is provided by the Ministry of Defence it will be available to all veterans across the United Kingdom and veterans with complex needs can be referred to the new Veterans Complex Prosthetic Assessment Clinic provided by the Ministry of Defence at Headley Court.

Fertility: Clinics

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with what frequency his Department assesses the work of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority's regulation of private fertility clinics; and when the last such assessment was conducted.

Nicola Blackwood: The Department holds quarterly meetings with the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) at which the Authority’s performance against its statutory duties is discussed. Outside of these meetings, officials have daily contact with members of the HFEA’s Executive on a range of business matters. The Department also has observer status at all meetings of the full Authority, the HFEA’s Audit and Governance Committee and the Scientific and Clinical Advances Advisory Committee. The HFEA’s regulatory duties, as determined by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, apply equally to fertility clinics in the NHS and independent sectors.

Fertility: Clinics

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his Department's policies of the findings on IVF add-on procedures of the report by the Centre for Evidence-based Medicine, Lack of Evidence for interventions offered in UK fertility centres, published on 28 November 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Nicola Blackwood: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is assessing the report by the Centre for Evidence-based Medicine. The study concluded that many fertility centres in the United Kingdom offer a range of add-ons in addition to standard in-vitro fertilisation procedures and, for many, claims of benefit are made. However, in most cases, the claims are not quantified and evidence is not cited to support the claims. The review concludes that there is a need for more information on add-ons to be made available by fertility clinics to support well-informed treatment decisions. The care offered in licensed fertility clinics is primarily a matter for the national regulator, the HFEA. The HFEA currently publishes information for patients about some add-on procedures and is committed to introducing a simple labelling system on its new website to highlight the risks and benefits of a wide range of treatment add-ons.

Health Services and Social Services

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to paragraph 1.4 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015 on local plans for health and social care integration, what steps the Government and NHS England are taking to ensure that (a) the needs of working age disabled people and (b) outcomes related to independent living are included in those plans.

David Mowat: The Better Care Fund (BCF), first announced in Spending Round 2013, and implemented from the beginning of 2015-16, is the first national, mandatory integration policy. One of its overarching aims is to keep people living independently at home and in their communities, including those who are disabled and of working age. The Integration and Better Care Fund Policy Framework for 2017-19, due to be published early in the New Year, sets out proposals for going beyond the BCF towards further integration by 2020. Although there will be no separate process for integration plans, local areas will set out how they expect to progress to further integration by 2020 in their BCF 17-19 returns. We will provide a set of resources, integration models and indicators for integration to help local areas. However, it will be up to local areas how they use the fund to benefit their population.

Orthopaedics: Children

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many child amputees there were in each of the past five years.

David Mowat: This information is not collected centrally.

Pathology

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of pathology services.

Mr Philip Dunne: Pathology services play a major role in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, as well as many other conditions. The National Health Service in England spends an estimated £2.5 to £3.0 billion annually on these services, and employs over 2,600 consultant pathologists. The Department’s national delivery partners are working to modernise the delivery of pathology services, and reviewing the workforce and training that will be required in the future.

Pathology: Northern Ireland

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with Northern Ireland's Minister of Health on the resources available for pathology services.

Mr Philip Dunne: Health is a devolved matter in the United Kingdom and so the question of the resources available for pathology services in Northern Ireland is a matter for Northern Ireland’s Minister of Health.

Lung Diseases

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment has been made and against what criteria of the success of the July 2011 Outcomes Strategy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Asthma in England.

David Mowat: No such assessment has been made. The strategy and its companion document provide excellent advice to the National Health Service on implementing changes at a local level to improve the management and care of people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Elements of the strategy have been incorporated into the NHS outcomes framework and have been used to develop the national COPD and asthma audits, the forthcoming best practice tariff for COPD and the smoking cessation Commissioning for Quality and Innovation payment. The Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Outcomes Indicator Set also includes indicators to support CCGs to understand the progress they are making in improving outcomes for people with COPD.

Department of Health: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the value of (a) staffing expenditure, (b) other revenue costs and (c) capital expenditure by his Department and its arms-length bodies in whole or in part in Yorkshire and the Humber in 2016-17.

Mr Philip Dunne: The data requested for 2016-17 is not collected centrally. Information for 2011-12 through to 2015-16 on the total amount of current and capital expenditure on services by organisations in Yorkshire and the Humber is publically available on gov.uk as part of the Country and Regional Analysis statistical release. This information can be found at the following web link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/country-and-regional-analysis-2016 A breakdown of total spending for the Department of Health group, including staff expenditure can be found in the Department of Health’s Annual Report and Accounts. The latest available being 2015-16, and reported in Note 2.2 Department Group Expenditure Detail on Page 136 following the web link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/539602/DH_Annual_Report_Web.pdf

Spinal Muscular Atrophy: Drugs

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with representatives from (a) NHS England, (b) Biogen pharmaceutical company and (c) patient groups on the Expanded Access programme for nusinersen for the treatment of infants with spinal muscular atrophy type 1.

Nicola Blackwood: We have had no such discussions. Biogen Ltd submitted a marketing authorisation application for nusinersen to the European Medicines Agency in October 2016. The application has been approved for accelerated assessment by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use. The licensing procedure is likely to take some months to complete. If approved, the product will be authorised for marketing in all European Union member states.

NHS: Private Patients

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2016 to Question 55033, what the number of private patients treated by the NHS was in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Mr Philip Dunne: Providers report income from private patients as part of their annual accounts, however the number of private patients treated by individual National Health Service providers is not collected centrally.

Community Health Services: Liverpool

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the value is of the contract won by Bridgewater NHS Trust for community health services in Liverpool; and if he will make an assessment of the likelihood of redundancies within those services in the first two years of that contract.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the time available for due diligence related to (a) finance, (b) IT, (c) estates, (d) clinical quality and (e) employees prior to the transition to the new contract for community services to Bridgewater NHS Trust in March 2017; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much funding in addition to the core contract value for community services in Liverpool has been agreed between Bridgewater NHS Trust and Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group to support transaction costs related to the transition between contracts; and in which years of that contract such funding will be available.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the change in financial value of the tendered contract for community services in Liverpool to £77 million was communicated to the bidders for that contract; and whether the bid for that contract from Bridgewater NHS trust was changed following that change in value.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the proposed (a) governance and (b) financial risk-sharing arrangements are between Bridgewater NHS Trust, Liverpool City Council and the GP provider organisation relating to the new contract for community health services in Liverpool; and what contingency arrangements there are in the event of the failure of that contract.

Mr Philip Dunne: We are informed by NHS Improvement of the following details in relation to the future provision of community services in Liverpool. The value of the contract for community health services in Liverpool for 2017/18 is £81.6 million. This matches the value of the contract for these services in 2016/17. NHS Improvement and Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust both recognise the need for thorough due diligence. Any analysis of potential redundancies will take place during this process. The new contract will not be in place until 1 July 2017 to enable due diligence to be completed. This will enable NHS Improvement fully to assess the Full Business Case to be submitted by Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust. NHS Improvement will also have sight of the Care Quality Commission’s inspection report for the Trust and the Trust’s subsequent action plan and response. It will also have sight of the outcome of the clinical review in relation to Liverpool Community Healthcare NHS Trust being led by Dr Bill Kirkup which will have reported well within the timeframe. The funding envelope was communicated to bidders in advance of their submissions. Both bidders were given the opportunity to resubmit their bids by NHS Improvement in October 2016. At this juncture, Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust revised its bid price. The current status of Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust is that of ‘preferred provider’ and as such NHS Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has not yet formally engaged the Trust in any contract discussions. Details around governance and financial risk sharing are still being worked on. Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust is currently working on the details of the proposed governance and financial risk sharing arrangements between the Trust, Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool GP Provider Organisation. These will be shared as part of the Full Business Case submission. The contract would be let by NHS Liverpool CCG on behalf of all three commissioners of these services; Liverpool City Council, NHS England and NHS Liverpool CCG itself. The contract would be under the standard National Health Service contracting arrangements. The contract would be let to Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust.

Hepatitis

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what timetable has been set by his Department for eliminating hepatitis C based on current testing and treatment rates.

Nicola Blackwood: Testing and diagnosis of individuals infected with hepatitis C and their subsequent engagement in care and treatment are important aspects of controlling hepatitis C, along with prevention activities and a comprehensive surveillance system. These actions will contribute to the World Health Organization Europe Action Plan for viral hepatitis which is looking for the elimination of viral hepatitis as a public health threat in the European Region by 2030. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence have published guidance on testing for hepatitis C to target at-risk populations. Data from Public Health England’s surveillance of blood born virus (BBV) testing in England and opt-out BBV testing programme in prisons suggest testing rates have remained stable in primary care and improved in pathfinder prisons. However, only around one half of people who inject drugs sampled in United Kingdom surveys were aware of their hepatitis C infection status, and this figure has remained relatively stable at this level over the last five years. Public Health England supports the Government’s efforts by publishing hepatitis C metrics which are available in the report Hepatitis C in the UK 2016 report: Working towards its elimination as a major public health threat. A copy of the report is attached.



Hepatitis C in the UK 2016 - PQ58500
(PDF Document, 913.66 KB)

Neuromuscular Disorders: Mental Health Services

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the availability of specialist psychology care for patients attending the neuromuscular service at the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

David Mowat: No assessment has been made. NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised neurological services, including services for patients with neuromuscular disorders. NHS England has published a service specification for neurological care that sets out what providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective services. The specification can be found at the following link:www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf National Health Service providers, working with local area teams, may establish patient access to neuromuscular care advisers if they consider it would benefit service provision; such decisions are a local matter.

NHS Walk-in Centres

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department issues to clinical commissioning groups on the provision of NHS walk-in centres.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Department does not offer such guidance. The configuration of local urgent care services is a matter for NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups and local healthcare providers.

Familial Hypercholesterolaemia

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to introduce a UK-wide national patient register and database for familial hypercholesterolemia.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it the Government's policy to report annually on the progress made in increasing the diagnosed familial hypercholesterolemia population across England.

Nicola Blackwood: Public Health England (PHE) has established the National Congenital Anomaly and Rare Disease Registration Service (NCARDRS) which brings together data from existing regional and disease specific registries into a single register. A certain form of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) - homozygous FH - is classified as a rare disease and so is included in NCARDRS. Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-national-congenital-anomaly-and-rare-disease-registration-service-ncardrs A registry containing information about children across England affected by FH is also already in existence. There are no current plans to develop any other national patient register and database for recording people with FH. However, where a family member has been diagnosed with FH, many of the cases are being recorded using cascade system software. The recording of such data is likely to increase across England as FH services are established. The Government has no plans to report annually on the progress made in increasing the number of people diagnosed with FH in England. However NHS England and PHE are working to raise the profile of FH and making the use of genetic testing more routine.

Cholesterol: Drugs

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients in England are currently  being treated with PCSK9 inhibitors for high cholesterol.

Nicola Blackwood: Information is not collected centrally on the number of people treated with a particular medicine or the condition being treated.

Heart Diseases: Drugs

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve patient access to PCSK9 inhibitors and other NICE-recommended cardiovascular disease medicines.

David Mowat: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has appraised the PCSK9 inhibitors alirocumab (Praluent) and evolocumab (Repatha) for treating primary hypercholesterolaemia and mixed dyslipidaemia. In June 2016, NICE issued final technology appraisal guidance recommending both treatments, subject to certain criteria. Further information is available at:www.nice.org.uk/guidance/conditions-and-diseases/diabetes-and-other-endocrinal--nutritional-and-metabolic-conditions/lipid-disorders National Health Service Commissioners are legally required to fund drugs and treatments recommended in NICE technology appraisal guidance, including those for cardiovascular disease, within three months of final guidance being issued.

HIV Infection: Clinical Trials

William Wragg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the announcement by NHS England of 4 December 2016 on a large-scale clinical trial of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV  prevention, how his Department plans to review progress during that trial; whether his Department plans to publish interim results of that trial; and whether his Department plans to fully commission PrEP before the end of the trial in the event that preliminary evidence shows it to be (a) effective at reducing HIV transmission, (b) cost effective and (c) affordable.

Nicola Blackwood: NHS England and Public Health England are working to finalise the clinical trial protocol and trial governance. This will determine the appropriate research framework for reviewing progress during the trial and publication of interim results. This will also clarify the amount and duration of drug used for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Decisions concerning future commissioning will be taken once answers to the key outstanding questions become available, such as what may be the extent of PrEP uptake by those at high HIV-risk and the duration of use.

HIV Infection: Clinical Trials

William Wragg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the announcement by NHS England of 4 December 2016 on a large-scale clinical trial of pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV  prevention, whether the reference to 10,000 people over three years means 10,000 people for up to three years each.

Nicola Blackwood: The clinical trial protocol of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is not yet finalised and one of the areas the trial is intended to investigate is the duration of PrEP for those at highest risk.